


Hisoka's Bad Romance

by themadnovelist



Series: Hisoka's Bad Romance [1]
Category: Hunter X Hunter
Genre: Beta Read, Killugon - Freeform, M/M, Pre-Relationship, Shipper Hisoka, Slow Burn, hisoillu
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-01-01
Updated: 2019-03-24
Packaged: 2019-10-02 11:27:05
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 7
Words: 31,790
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17263406
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/themadnovelist/pseuds/themadnovelist
Summary: Ever wondered what sort of things our favorite magician gets up to when he's not out being creepy and killing people for fun?A silly idea which became my first attempt at writing something kinda silly for this fandom... probably not what you're expecting from the title.Originally a one-shot, I have decided to make this into a multi-chapter story.Thanks to everyone who has read, left kudos and comments, I hope that you will enjoy the new additions and the rest of the story. ** number of chapters is a estimate, and may change **Now beta-read and edited by the awesome Muffinmadness from AO3.Sadly still not sponsored by Bungee-gum.





	1. Chapter 1

**Hisoka’s Bad Romance**

 

 

The day outside was bright with only a few clouds breaking up the expanse of blue visible through the windows of the hotel room where two young hunters were practising ren. That was until a familiar buzzing from one of their nearby phones broke the focus of the green clad teenager. Eliciting a grown from their snowy-haired friend who had been training with them.

 

“Gon, I thought I told you to turn that off while we trained?” he complained as he watched his friend lose all focus to check the buzzing phone.

 

“Gomen Killua… I’m sure it won’t be anything too important but it’d be rude not to answer” the dark haired boy smiled at his friend sheepishly, before turning his attention to the still ringing phone in his hand. “Hello this is Gon?” he picked up the call a little surprised at who had been calling.

 

Killua stood watching and trying to listen in on the call, his friend had been receiving these random and often frustratingly timed calls for a while now. Each time he had tried to get the identity of the caller from his companion only for the questions to be brushed off with a shy smile or nervous laughter. After standing around for several minutes the young assassin threw his hands up in the air and stalked out of the room to get them both something to drink. They’d both been at their nen practice for several hours now, surely a small break wouldn’t hurt too much. So with a yawn and a satisfying stretch he went about fixing them some refreshments coming back in to the lounge with a tray just in time to catch the end of the mysterious phone conversation.   
  
“Yes! Exactly…. Uh I think so?…. So is that everything you needed to know?” Gon looked like he was pensive as he wrapped up the phone call, before brightening up into his usual cheerful demeanor “Don’t worry I won’t tell, your secret is still safe with me! If you need any more help let me know OK?… You too, bye!”

 

“So still not going to tell me who all these random phone calls are from huh Gon? It’s like you have some sort of secret girlfriend...” Killua spoke in a teasing tone, earning a confused look from the other boy. Causing the paler teen to grin, “Come on it’s about time we had a break so don’t worry about it.”

 

*********  
  
Meanwhile at a cafe sitting at an outside table in front of a laptop elegant fingers tipped with long manicured nails fly across the keyboard, in the throws of new inspiration. Their owner smiles in a slightly sinister fashion as their hands move back and forth over the keys and the words appear on the screen. Narrowed eyes reviewing as each new line appears, tweaking here and there as they go. Stopping only to take a sip from their warm drink which was cooling on the table next to them, ignoring the random chatter from the establishments other patrons lost in their thoughts. Not even the sound of a new message being received on their phone broke their concentration as they were so engrossed in their task. Pausing to check through the notes they took from the phone call they had made earlier they nodded to themselves in thought, idly tapping their finger nails against their coffee cup. Should they put that scene now or later? They mused for a moment draining the last of their beverage and decided on later, it was too soon to step things up and it wouldn’t hurt to keep the readers hanging just a little bit longer. The smile became a smirk as the song of key strokes picked up once again.

 

*********  
  
“Soooo Killua, what do you want to do when we finish training today?” Gon asked his friend nervously, he knew his travelling companion was starting to get suspicious about his ever increasing secret phone conversations. Currently they were enjoying the drinks the blue eyed hunter had fetched and the sandwiches they had thoughtfully made. Said teen stopped to look at his dark haired friend curiously. “I mean it’s been a while since we’ve seen Leorio or Kurapika, maybe we should call them and see what they’re doing?” Gon continued. ‘Please don’t ask about the phone call, please don’t ask’ he repeated inside his head like a manta as he tried to maintain eye contact with the other hunter.

 

“Yeah that’s true it has been a while since we’ve seen anyone, or you know we could go explore the city for a bit? Just as long as we don’t bump into that creepy clown again, how does he always seem to know where we are anyway?” Killua took a bite out of his sandwich and chewed thoughtfully before continuing, “You don’t think he’s put some sort of tracking device on you do you Gon? I mean he is kinda obsessed with you. Ever since you guys faced off in Heaven’s Arena, I wouldn’t be surprised if he’s stalking you.” the teen ate the last bite of his food and fixed his cat like gaze on his friend to gauge his reaction. If Gon had been listening he didn’t give any indication instead lying back on the floor staring at the ceiling with a stupid grin on his face. Feeling mischievous the light haired hunter decided to grab a cushion from a nearby chair and threw it at his friend chuckling when it hit him square in the face.

 

Instead of complaining about the sudden attack, the green clad hunter glowered at his laughing buddy and threw it back without even sitting up. Waiting to see if his aim was true before suddenly jumping up and running out of the room to hide. Yelping in surprise when he was hit in the back by the same cushion signalling his friend was also in the mood for some fun and the hotel suite they were renting was soon filled with the noise of their feet pounding on the floor and their shrieks and howls of laughter as they continued to throw every available cushion and pillow at the other. Like some sort of indoor snowball fight, except with soft furnishings.

 

*********

 

Back at the cafe the first mug had been joined by a twin as pale hands had continued to dance across the keys as the phone on the table had continued to beep and buzz in a futile attempt at getting it’s owners attention. Finally satisfied that the piece of writing was long enough bright fox-like eyes read over it once again, correcting the few errors that they had made as they went. Once they were finished the laptops user saved the document to make sure they would have a back up for later if they felt the need to go make and make any revisions later based on the feed back of their audience. Next they pulled up their website where they published their work and uploaded a new post with this latest chapter with a grin. It had been a fair number of months since Machi had told him bluntly to quit hitting on her and get himself another hobby and he decided to take the advice to heart. Who knew he had such a creative streak in him?

 

He reached out to grab his drink when a shadow fell across the table blocking his view across the street, golden eyes finally looked up from his computer screen. Where they met a pair of dark and mostly vacant black ones which seemed to appear unusually annoyed. “I figured I would find you here” came the familiar mono-tone voice, “Is there a reason you’re ignoring my calls Hisoka?”

 

“Oh?” Hisoka feigned surprise that anyone had tried to call him, picked up his phone and schooled his features into one of surprise “I didn’t realise you tried to call me, must of left my phone on silent” he lied smoothly and with his usual confidence. Giving a cheeky grin to the still standing man before him as he sipped at his now Luke-warm coffee. “To what do I owe the pleasure of this visit Illumi?” he gestured with his free hand for the newcomer to sit with him, inwardly pleased when they did so.

 

Taking the offered seat the newcomer sat down with his usual cat like grace and regarded the redhead sat in front of him with interest, noting the presence of the laptop. The eldest Zoldyck hadn’t really pegged the magician come hunter to interested in technology or computers but decided to mentally file this new information away for later use. His analytical gaze discerned that although the device didn’t appear to be old it wasn’t the latest model either indicating that the other man had owned it for a while, there were even playing card suit stickers on the back of the lid. Had Illumi been anyone else he would of probably smiled in amusement at the sight.

 

“Well? Cat got your tongue there Illumi?” Hisoka’s sing-song voice brought the infamous assassin out of his thoughts, he seemed to be getting a little impatient ironically.

 

“I came to ask for your help with something, Kill has been avoiding my calls again and mother wants to know where he is.” the long haired brunette began. Not noticing that the other man didn’t appear to be paying attention, instead looking intently at his computer screen. “Well as you always seems to have tabs on Gon who he’s travelling with I was hoping you could point me in the right direction. Naturally I am more then capable of finding him on my own but you could save me valuable time.”

 

“Is that all?” golden eyes flicked up from his screen filled with amusement, “Just so happens I have some idea where they are, I spoke to Gon earlier.” he paused to sip at his coffee once more, grimacing as it had now gone completely cold. He gestured to the waitress for a new one who smiled at the red head and went to fetch one for him. “So are you actually going to pay me for this information this time or are you willing to owe me another favour? You know how I enjoy having a Zoldyck I can call on for a favour Ilum-mi” he stretched out the other’s name purposely to try and get any sort of emotional reaction from the constantly stoic assassin. Unfortunately it didn’t work this time, just like it hadn’t worked on previous occasions.   
  
“Naturally I’ll transfer you the usual amount depending on how good your information is Hisoka, this is simply business after all.” there was that usual mono-tone, ‘how boring’ the red head thought rolling his expressive golden eyes.

 

“Of course, how silly of me.” a pale hand picked up his cell phone and typed out a short message before punching in the other man’s phone number and pressing send. “There you are Illumi, that’s the name of the hotel Gon said they were staying at here in this city so you won’t have far to go. So was that everything you needed from me today?” the magicians tone had lost some of it’s usual playful quality, indicating his growing boredom with the situation.

 

“Actually Hisoka, before I go there is one thing I’m wondering if you could help me with...” the long haired man spoke again, still not making a move to leave as he stared at his phone, “There is something which has been troubling me for a few months now. Mother and Father think it’s harmless but I’m not as convinced as them.”

 

“Hmm? It’s not like you to go against mommy and daddy are you feeling OK?” Hisoka replied teasingly, poking fun at his not quite friends undying loyalty to his family. Who as ever remained passively oblivious to when he was being made fun of.

 

“That is true but I simply can not ignore my instincts on this, as it concerns Kill. As his older brother you know it is my responsibility to make sure he takes over the family one day. You see it’s come to my attention that somebody appears to be writing some sort of… how do I say this… romantic fantasy about him.” the normally expressionless man continued, “Naturally this is a concern because it would compromise the family, and that is simply unacceptable. Whomever it is has been clever to change slight details to avoid it being obvious but there are enough similarities for it sound just like Kill.” Before he continue his explanation Illumi’s phone vibrated in his hand drawing his attention. At the same time the waitress returned with the hunter’s fresh coffee, the magician finally taking an interest in what the other man was saying.

 

He picked up the new mug blew on it to cool it a little and took a sip of the fresh caffeinated drink, ‘aaah much better’ he thought to himself. “So let met get this straight Illumi… you’re worried because your little brother Killua has a fan who is writing stories about him? I don’t see the problem, they’re prolly just a fan girl from when he was at Heaven’s arena. It’s not that uncommon these days you know, you should see the stories I’ve had written about me by some of my fans.” he chuckled, “I bet they’d even make you emote...” the red heads words trailed off as his gaze caught a glimpse at the webpage the other man was currently viewing on his phone screen and swallowed. It looked a little familiar but surely it couldn’t be what he thought it was could it? Looking up from his phone screen Illumi fixed his acquaintance with a steely stare clearly unamused at the dig about his usual lack of emotion.

 

“Of course you wouldn’t understand, it’s not like you have any younger siblings to worry about is it Hisoka” Illumi shook his head as he spoke, eyes still glued to the webpage on his phone screen not looking up at the magician. If he had of been paying more attention he would of picked up on the way the other hunter was looking unusually uncomfortable with the direction of their conversation. “I still think you leaked those photos yourself for attention, everyone knows you like an audience”

 

“You wound me, Illumi!” holding his hand to his forehead in an overly dramatic mock show of hurt, “and I thought we were friends” Hisoka pouted. Soon giving up playing for sympathy when he realised that the other wasn’t buying it, true he did have a streak in him which got a thrill out of exhibitionism but the idea of leaking his own photos hadn’t occurred to him. Although the idea was a fun one and a sly smile split his features as he considered the prospect. So lost in this idea of how that could play out he didn’t notice that the other man had moved and was now looking intently at his laptop’s screen. Which just so happened to have the same website open in the browser that the assassin was looking at on his phone.

 

“Hisoka…. I had no idea you read this trash too but I really shouldn’t be surprised I mean this is you we’re talking about….” Illumi’s words brought Hisoka crashing back to reality and in a panic he closed the window. Forgetting he had left his word processing software open with the saved chapter he had just uploaded earlier, with an uncharacteristic squeak of surprise he closed the laptop lid a little too harshly and winced. Hopefully he hadn’t damaged the screen doing that. Ah well too late now, not like he couldn’t afford to get it replaced. Quickly recovering and trying to feign annoyance at the behaviour of the other man he glowered at him. Shimmering golden eyes narrowing dangerously as he frowned hoping that the other hadn’t realised he’d panicked just now. The last thing he wanted was for him to start asking questions. That would get awkward, very fast.   
  
“Heh, well I suppose you think the other main character is a lot like Gon?” Illumi asked, acting as if nothing unusual had just happened. Or so you would assume if you didn’t know the eldest Zoldyck the way the redhead hunter did.

 

“Oh? Really you think so?” the magician tried to feign innocence and ignorance, sipping his coffee to distract himself, “I hadn’t noticed, I honestly didn’t think it would be the sort of thing you’d read. It’s just a childish story after all.”   
  
Illumi hummed quietly in response, he was starting to get suspicious with the how the other man was acting. This wasn’t the man he knew, he was not skittish like this. Clearly he was hiding something, maybe he knew who the author was and trying to cover for them to protect them perhaps? No that wasn’t the magician’s style. He would be more likely to blackmail them into including himself into the story, he was arrogant enough in the Zoldyck’s opinion and estimation. That being said he wouldn’t of expected the other hunter to accept not being the interest of the Gon character so what was he hiding? Absently he reached for one of his nen imbued needles but remembered where they were, it was much too public. This wouldn’t do, he clicked his tongue and continued to stare at the now closed laptop. “Shouldn’t you check to make sure you haven’t damaged your computer screen in your embarrassment Hisoka?” he asked tonelessly. Deciding to play on the other’s pride to see if would give away what he was hiding he figured he could try and press the magicians buttons. “Besides I didn’t think you’d want to read anything written by a fan of Gon’s which didn’t involve you, I mean it’s clearly Kill and Gon now I am thinking about it”

 

“Illumi, be careful what you’re implying there.” Hisoka’s voice held a slight growl to it, “Yes I want to fight Gon but my little fruit is far from ripe enough for me to have my fun. Don’t forget what I told you at the exam, Gon is mine.”

 

“I haven’t forgotten, do not worry I’m not going to touch your ‘fruit’ as long as you make sure he doesn’t corrupt Kill.” the long haired brunette held up a hand to placate the gradually becoming irritated man across the table who was glaring at him over his coffee cup. “You’re probably right and I’m probably worrying about nothing like you said it’s probably some silly teenage girl who’s into what do they call it these days… yaoi? I hear from Milluki that is actually quite popular.” he continued ignoring the way Hisoka’s eye had started to twitch slightly. “Also what kind of a pen name is ‘Calliope’ anyway? What sort of name is that?”

 

“It’s mythological Illumi, they’re one of the nine muses” Hisoka responded in a lazy tone of voice, mentally trying to plot a way out of the awkward situation he had found himself in. “I wouldn’t expect you to know about such things as it’s not exactly relevant your work” He downed the rest of his drink and went to gather his things so that he could leave, after paying the bill for all of his drinks.

 

“I suppose you’ve got a point there” the other man conceded, “Well I need to go and speak to Kill, I’ll call you later to discuss payment for the help with tracking my brother down.” With that the assassin left without giving the pale red head a chance to say anything further.   
  
*********

 

Later that night Hisoka was sat up typing away on his laptop once again. The talk he’d had with his associate in the cafe had given some ideas for how to add some angst to the story he’d been composing. He had been worried briefly that Illumi had figured him out, and realised that he was actually ‘Calliope’ and that it had been him who had been running the website which not only hosted his story but also had fans who would send him fan art and even fan mail with their own suggestions for his next chapters. He’d just been spending an hour replying to the latest messages he’d received and reading the latest reviews for the chapter he’d uploaded earlier and was now in a flash of inspiration furiously typing out another early update for his readers. He figured it was overdue that he thanked Machi for suggesting he ‘get a hobby’ and had decided to message her earlier. The confused response of ‘you’re welcome I guess?’ had made him chuckle.   
  
He’d just finished a draft for a new chapter, and made some notes planning out the next few when his phone had started to ring. The magician picked up the phone to check the caller ID contemplating ignoring the call until he saw it was Illumi who was calling. This would have been odd for him to call so late if they hadn’t of agreed that he would be in touch to discuss paying for the information the redhead had provided earlier.   
  
“Good evening Illumi, did you find Killua?” he answered with is usual carefree drawl, saving his latest work before closing his word processor down. He could always come back to it later or even tomorrow, not like his readers would be expecting another update this soon after the last one.

 

“Hisoka we need to talk.” came the assassins monotone, “but yes I went to the hotel and spoke to the hotel staff there, they confirmed Kill was staying there but had checked out before I got there.”   
  
“Oh I see, what a pity. I’m afraid Gon didn’t mention anything about moving on when I spoke to him earlier.” he tried to keep the mocking tone out of his voice and was mostly successful, “it’s possible that they figured I’d tell you where they were and checked out after I spoke to them?” he suggested trying to be helpful.   
  
“Perhaps, I don’t think you’d of warned them I was coming would you Hisoka?” Illumi came right out and asked, if it had been from anyone else it would of sounded like an accusation.   
  
“Again with the suspicion Illumi, you really are trying to hurt me today aren’t you?” Hisoka tried to make his voice sound like he was upset, it wasn’t completely successful.   
  
“Hisoka we both know that you are by definition capricious and not exactly trustworthy. You have loose lips which is why I don’t tell you everything.” Illumi dead panned down the phone. “Besides I am calling to tell you I know you’re hiding something”  
  
“Really Illumi?” Hisoka responded sarcastically, “That’s not exactly news now is it? When aren’t I hiding something?”   
  
“True enough, but I am referring to your latest hobby. I’m surprised I didn’t figure it out sooner.” The stoic man continued, “The fact that you know that Calliope is a figure from mythology is unusual for you, you don’t care about the past or history in general. You’re the one writing that trash romance story about my Kill and Gon aren’t you?”

 

“So what if I am Illumi?” Hisoka asked in a challenging tone, “It’s not like you have any way to pin that on me”  
  
“Take the site down Hisoka, and I won’t push this any further and you can consider this friendly warning as your payment for your earlier help” the eldest Zoldyck child continued to talk in his usual monotone, but the red head still narrowed his eyes in response to the thinly veiled threat behind the words.

 

“Why so worried Illumi are you scared they’ll read the story and decide to become a couple? You could always let your brother have his fun if Gon and Killua were to get together and break up then who do you think he would come and lean on for support?” Hisoka chose his words carefully, trying to keep a neutral tone and not to sound defensive of his pet project. “Besides it’s clear to me that Killua likes Gon and I think they’d make an adorable couple Illumi” he chuckled as he examined his manicured nails and his friend growled down the phone.

 

“That’s not funny Hisoka, Kill doesn’t need friends he is an assassin.” Illumi didn’t get a chance to finish his rant before the other hunter cut him off.  
  
“For the millionth time Illumi I know, but it’s just a harmless story it’s not like they’re getting married. Besides it’s not like I can’t choose to make it end happily or not...” realising he had just confessed to being the author his words died in his throat, crap Illumi was going to kill him. Or at least try to.   
  
There was silence for a few moments where neither man spoke, the pause pregnant with expectation for the next words to fill the void. And so it happened that both men spoke at the same time after digesting what had just happened.   
  
“I can explain!” Hisoka spoke weakly, as Illumi also spoke to say “Can you add me to the story?”

 

Both men went silent as they waited for the other to say what they had been about to say, the only sound on the line the quiet breathing from the magician who was anticipating an angry assassin to break his door down at any moment and was readying himself for the attack. Instead there was a knock at the door, not hanging up the phone but not speaking either Hisoka slowly and cautiously made his way to the hotel room door. Opening it slowly to reveal Illumi on the other side, his usual vacant expression and his phone still in one hand up to his ear. Seeing the anxious redhead standing in the door way he hung up the phone and pushed past him to sit on the sofa. Yellow gaze following his every movement with interest, cogs turning in the red heads mind trying to work out what the assassins move would be.   
  
“Illumi if you allow me I can explain...” he started but was cut off by Illumi raising a hand in the air to indicate he wanted to speak.

 

“Can you include me in your story?” he asked simply, “I didn’t mean to make fun of your writing earlier I’ve read everything you’ve posted so far and it’s been pretty enjoyable. It just feels weird reading about my brother being in a relationship and doing….”  
  
“Relationship things?” Hisoka suggested, trying to be helpful. Fighting a smile when the dark haired man nodded. “He’s getting to that age where he’s going to experiment, I know I had done much more by the time I was their age you know.” the magician gave his associate a knowing look complete with his signature smirk, he hadn’t moved from the door but was starting to let his guard down.

 

“Some how I am not surprised by that, but you still haven’t answered by question. Can you include me in your story?” Illumi pressed his earlier question.

 

“Why should I allow you to mess with my muse?” the standing man shot back, “You can’t interfere with with an artists creative process didn’t anyone tell you?” He arched an eyebrow expectantly.

 

“If you include me then I won’t try to kill you?” Illumi offered, “Although knowing you, you’d want me to try, why don’t you name your price? However I expect you to portray me as a good older brother.”   
  
Hisoka chuckled, and finally stepped away from the door to walk back to where he laptop lay still switched on and waiting for input. “To be honest I had been considering introducing some more characters, so why not? You can live your desire to be a good brother through my writing if you wish, as for what I want in return. I have two conditions, and I’ll let you help me with planning the next few updates.” He turned to the stoic man expectantly awaiting their reply, as they appeared to think it over.

 

“What are these conditions?” was the toneless reply.

 

“First you have to promise you won’t harm Gon in anyway no matter how close he and Killua become, I honestly couldn’t care what you do with your own brother. Secondly Illumi I want you to admit that I’m you’re friend.” He finished with a sly grin, he didn’t think the brunette would go for the second condition but it was fun to try and get him to have an emotional response to anything.   
  
“If I agree to this you’ll write me as a good older brother in your story?”, Illumi watched as the pale redhead nodded with a close eyed smile, “fine. I swear on my name as a Zoldyck I won’t harm Gon, and fine you are my friend Hisoka.”   
  
“Wonderful! I knew you cared about me Illumi! Now let’s get to work on your character shall we?”

 

 

 

 


	2. Chapter 2

Gon hummed to himself cheerfully as he wandered down the busy city street, skilfully slipping through the crowds of busy shoppers. Seemingly without a care in the world as he meandered apparently without aim enjoying the sights. His best friend Killua had been a bit suspicious when he had told him that he needed to go run some errands on his own but had reluctantly agreed to stay back and do his own thing for a few hours. Insisting that if anything bad happened the young brunette would call him as soon as possible. As usual the green clad teen had reassured the prodigy assassin he would be fine. Coming across the shopping district Gon stopped and fished out his phone and opened his messages to double check the message he had received requesting his presence. The message was brief and didn’t say much of interest or importance, it was a simple request for the happy go lucky lad to come to a small cafe alone. Not for the first time his natural curiosity and adventurous spirit overrode what could be considered his common sense, and he was now looking around as he walked more slowly for the named destination in the text he had received from an unknown number.

It took a few brief minutes before he found his target and he found himself standing awkwardly outside the ‘Mad Hatter’s Tearooms’. The place was a lot more subdued then he expected it to be with such a strange name but he was inwardly thankful that it was somewhere pretty normal if he was being honest with himself. Double checking the message one last time and to make sure he wasn’t running late he steeled his resolve and gritted his teeth plucking up the courage to enter the establishment. Plastering his friendliest smile he walked up to the door with a determined stride and pushed the door open with a small jingle from the bell announcing his entrance coming from the top of the doorway. Chocolate eyes curiously took in the interior of the place, the décor was bright and airy in subtle creams and hints of green and brown accents with the occasional plant dotted around for added colour. The atmosphere was calm and the noise of many different conversations reached his ears as he tried to work out who was here that he possibly knew so that he had some idea as to who had requested his presence. Instinctively going into zetsu despite there being no obvious threat he slowly walked further into the building observing all the tables near to him as he moved until a shock of colour in amongst all the drab pale colours caught his attention. The bright cranberry redhead facing slightly away from him looked familiar but surely that couldn’t be who he thought it was could it?

Driven ever onwards by curiosity Gon edged his way towards the blob of colour in a sea of neutral tones, something about the way the patron’s hair looked familiar, and something in the way they were sat tugged at his memories. However the memories didn’t match what he was seeing. This person was not wearing flashy clothing in bright colours with suit symbols, instead they were wearing a simple sleeveless muscle vest in plain black with a v-neck hinting at the defined chest underneath the fabric, he had one leg crossed over the other showing he was wearing a pair of loose fitting jeans and heeled boots. Besides the man as Gon got closer he was certain it was a man, he could see a light weight jacket had been folded on the booth next to them. In front of them was a laptop which had suit symbols adoring the lid, and the patron seemed to be nursing their drink while staring intently at the screen with a sardonic smile tugging at their lips. As if they were smiling at their own internalised personal joke. It wasn’t till they looked up that a very familiar pair of amber eyes became visible under the long cranberry bangs and took in the fact that somebody was standing at their table staring.

“H-Hi-Hisoka?” Gon stammered in shock when he finally recognised the older hunter and in his mind not quite ally but not quite enemy. “What are you doing here? You look nor… I mean you look different.” he added trying to regain his composure and not wanting to insult the man sitting at the table. After all regardless of any assistance he had provided in the past this man was still dangerous and the last thing he wanted to do was provoke him in any way. Said man simply hummed in response as if contemplating whether to lie to the boy or tell him the truth, being a self proclaimed whimsical liar you could never be certain if anything he said could be trusted or not.

“Didn’t your family ever teach you it’s rude to stare Gon?” he asked playfully, “As for what I’m doing here isn’t it obvious? They have free Wi-Fi here and good coffee, maybe I should ask you what you are doing here?” There was that smirk again which always riled up the younger male, Hisoka knew already why Gon was there but he wanted to see how the other would answer his query. Watching intently over his mug of coffee, amusement dancing in his sunshine gaze as the brunette floundered at the teasing reprimand for staring at him.

“I came here to meet somebody… well… I got a message asking me to meet them here but it’s from a number I don’t recognize and I don’t know who sent it….” the youngsters voice started to trail off as he realised how stupid he must look and sound to the hunter sat in front of him. “I was hoping maybe it was Kurapika or Leorio and they forgot to tell me they have a new number, I wasn’t expecting to see you here Hisoka. Erm… sorry for bothering you I can leave you alone as you look kinda busy he he” he laughed a bit nervously and tried to back away to continue looking for anyone else he might know as he didn’t think that the magician would of summoned him. Normally if Hisoka wanted to talk he would just call, it hadn’t occurred to Gon that the golden eyed man frequently called from different numbers as he rarely checked his caller ID before answering the phone. A habit Killua would regularly scold him for.

“Oh?” Hisoka hiked an elegant eyebrow in mock interest, enjoying teasing the teen, “What a fun coincidence it just so happens I’m waiting for somebody to come meet me here. I need to discuss something important with them you see. You might know them actually” he continued in his playful lilting tone, holding a hand up to be level with Gon’s height before carrying on with his explanation “They’re about this tall, usually walk around in shorts, wear a lot of green and like fishing, do you know anyone like that Gon?”

To the normally dangerous magicians delight Gon actually paused in his slow retreat and appeared to be deep in thought as to who the man could be describing. Failing to see the obvious as everything that Hisoka had rattled off could be used as a description of him. Ever happy to help the young hunter stood and racked his brain until steam appeared to come out of his ears, the sight eliciting a chuckle from the seated male. Which caused Gon to scowl at up at him in annoyance at being laughed at when he was trying to be helpful it wasn’t nice to make fun of others who were trying to be nice.

“Hisoka it’s not nice to laugh at other people like that. What’s so funny anyway?” he huffed in frustration as the magician covered his face and continued to laugh his mirth shaking his shoulders slightly as he did so. “If you don’t stop laughing at me I’m going to leave you know.”

“Ooooh Gon you are so delightful you know that? You never cease to be entertaining and that’s what I like about you.” the red head pointed an elegant finger at the boy in front of him, “perhaps you need to take a look in the mirror sometime though hmm? I mean I’m surprised my description wasn’t obvious, I mean really I do have your number and we have been speaking quite a lot recently have we not?”

********

Meanwhile while his friend was being tormented by a certain occasionally malevolent acquaintance Killua was stuck waiting in their current hotel room. His paranoia about them being stalked by said acquaintance meant that he insisted himself and Gon frequently move to different hotels so not to draw attention to themselves even though they didn’t want to to leave the current city they had travelled to. At first the teen had decided to get in some extra training but quickly grew bored without his friend to complete against, so he went searching through their supplies for more of his favourite treat, choco robots. After several minutes of searching through all of his his bags he found two of the sugary confections holding them aloft like a grand prize. The excitement didn’t last long, and neither did the sweet snack and he was left again wondering what to do while he awaited Gon’s return.

In a mostly a futile attempt at staving off boredom the white haired teen decided to try channel hopping but quickly gave up on that idea, recalling the last time he had watched random videos in a hotel. Turning off the TV he lay back once again on the sofa and ran through is options for what else he could do for fun. Dismissing most of the ideas as things which would be boring without his travelling companion, leaving him staring at the rooms ceiling. Until a buzzing on the coffee table drew his sapphire gaze to notice a small blinking notification light now flashing on his previously abandoned cell phone. Thinking it might be his fellow hunter he instinctively pounced on the mobile to check the latest notification. Both disappointed and pleased by what it was, it was not a message from Gon but instead a notification for an update to an online story he had subscribed to a few weeks ago. With a wry smile he figured it wouldn’t hurt to indulge in his guilty pleasure as he pulled up the website on his phone glancing at the hotel room door to make sure he was still alone. Satisfied that he would not be disturbed for the foreseeable future he navigated the website for Calliope’s Amusements, and went to the recent news page. Reading the latest post with avid interest, it listed some notes from the author explaining that they were holding a competition for some fan art of the most recently introduced character Isaac.

Killua huffed in frustration at first, until he read to the bottom which indicated that there was a new chapter that has just been published earlier that day. ‘All right!’ he thought to himself, reading the romance story had become his little secret ever since he stumbled across it while browsing the web for relationship advice. He was a little embarrassed about the fact he was reading a romance story which was clearly aimed at an audience other then him but he kept on reading it regardless. Usually when he couldn’t sleep and Gon was sleeping soundly besides him. It would be nice to have some privacy while he indulged in his fix of cheesy romance he decided as he clicked on the link for ‘Forever Unrequited? - latest chapter’ on the dark pink navigation bar at the top of the news page.

“Oh Kane when are you just going to tell Gene how you feel?” the engrossed teen groaned out load as he started to read the latest addition to the story. Completely unaware of the irony of his statement, considering that he was himself hiding his feelings for another important person in his life. Or that said person was currently sitting in a cafe several blocks away in the main shopping area of the city conversing with the stories author over a friendly drink.

********

Back at the tea room Gon had gotten over his initial shock at finding Hisoka waiting for him and was now sitting in the booth across from the magician come author. After the older male had managed to convince the young hunter to stick around as he genuinely had wanted to discuss something with him Gon had agreed to hear him out. Stating clearly that should he try any funny business he would be leaving immediately. So far all that had happened was Hisoka had typed up some notes on his laptop, and drunk more coffee even going as far as to order a large milkshake for his guest. That had been around fifteen to twenty minutes ago and the green clad boy was getting impatient with the mystery that had taken over his day. Instead he could have been back in his hotel training, or playing games with his friend. Instead he was sitting next to one of the most hazardous individuals he had met so far in his short but eventful life. Unable to take the silence between them any longer. Gon chose to speak up first. Simply earning himself a quizzical look from the hunter sitting next to him at their shared table.

“So you’re not saying much for somebody who wanted to discuss something with me you know Hisoka...” he paused to take another small drink of his shake, “normally you’re always saying how I’m your unripe fruit and you want to fight me, this isn’t like you”

The response following the look was a chuckle, before the melodious voice which Gon associated with terror and excitement spoke up, “Is that so Gon? Pray tell how much about me do you actually know outside of our encounters during the exam and Heaven’s arena?”

Once again golden eyes bore down into chocolate brown with an unspoken challenge between both individuals. Much to the surprise of the latter it was the former who broke eye contact first on this occasion. Brown eyes continued to drink in the mysterious man before them, the relatively normal style of dress seemed odd on the lean and muscular male when the teen was used to seeing bright and attention drawing stage outfits. At first he had thought the signature trade mark suit symbols had been missing but now he was seated he could easily see them adoring the decorative belt buckle which was previously obscured by the cafe table. What did Gon know about this man before him really? The first things which came to mind were things he had been told at the hunter exam, but Hisoka had already excluded anything relating to the exam and their time fighting at Heaven’s arena. That didn’t leave much that wasn’t pretty obvious, or that couldn’t be considered as mere rumours and hear say.

Determined to give some sort of an answer he sat there deep in thought and watched the other work, in awe at how fast the magicians long fingers moved over the keys of his laptop keyboard. He’d never noticed how elegant the other’s hands were and how neat his nails were before and that gave him an idea on how to answer the challenge he has been set. “I think you’re somebody who takes great pride in his appearance Hisoka.” Gon blurted out suddenly causing the keystrokes to come to a sudden stop, “plus you like magic tricks or you wouldn’t refer to yourself as a magician so I think that means you like mystery which is why you keep playing these games with me isn’t it?” With a pleased look he grinned up at the surprised hunter who was now looking at him with a look of surprise mixed with delight. No sooner then the teenager had turned his attention back to the dregs of his almost finished drink he felt a large hand ruffle his hair. The sudden gesture of affection was completely unexpected and made Gon feel strange and he looked up to find Hisoka had shifted position slightly. No longer directly facing his laptop which was sitting idle on the desktop wallpaper which he could now see was a simple pale pink with the suit symbols in a square formation. Head resting on one hand as mischief and mirth danced in the yellow orbs observing him as the other hand still rested in his normally spiked up hair which now being flattened by the large palm resting on his crown. Amusement was tugging at the lips on the pale face devoid of it’s usual make up, and Gon realised finally what had been bugging him the most. The lack of the other’s signature star and tear drop, when he thought of Hisoka several things game to mind those two symbols were as synonymous with the magician to Gon as playing cards.

“Hisoka… For once can you just tell me what you want and drop the games?” the teen asked the man watching him in an earnest tone.

“I already told you what I want back on Zevil Island Gon, you’re just not ripe enough yet for it to be worth it. Until then I’ll keep good on my word to make sure nobody else gets to harm you.” the words were spoken in a bored tone, and the hand resting in his hair was removed to pick up the now empty mug. Hisoka glared at it like it had just insulted bungee gum before putting it back on the table. “Or did you mean what did I want with you today my little apple?”

The continued teasing earned him a glare and a growl from the increasingly annoyed hunter who had come at his behest to the busy tearoom. Even after all this time he couldn’t help himself, it was just too much fun to get him riled up. He loved that look. The look which promised so much to come in the future if he could just keep his patience in check and make sure his precious fruit fulfilled his potential. Holding both hands up in a placating gesture to calm the seething boy he tried to defuse the potential situation before it started, he was rather fond of this little tea shop and he didn’t want to get thrown out or worse still barred. Seeing the annoyance and frustration giving way to curiosity once again he took the opportunity to fish out a small pad and a pen handing them to the boy who was watching him with interest.

“What’s this for?” he asked not understanding what the magician wanted from him. “You already have my phone number Hisoka, if you just wanted more ideas you could of just called you didn’t need to drag me out here.”

“Oh Gon, my wonderful little fruit you act so mature sometimes I forget how young and naive you still are….” the red head sing singsonged holding up a finger when he sensed the other wanted to retort, “I wanted to show my appreciation for all your help and I suppose for Killua’s help as well. Even if he isn’t aware he has been giving it,” he paused to chuckle as if at his own private joke, “So I asked you here in part because I enjoy your company and also to ask you for your bank details. You see I managed to make some extra jenny from ad revenue on my website and decided I would share my good fortune with you. Perhaps you can finally take your little friend on a date? I bet you could give me some wonderful inspiration then couldn’t you my adorable muse?”

*******

Not long after a dumbfounded Gon had left his little rendezvous to head back to the hotel to return to Killua considerably richer then he had left thanks to Hisoka’s unexpected generosity. He found himself pondering why the older male had dropped such an unsubtle hint about him and Killua going on a date together. The idea seemed strange to Gon, Killua was his best friend why would they go on a date? That wasn’t the sort of things friends did, then again he’d never had a best friend before maybe it was something best friends did as well as couples? The walk back flew by as he was lost in his thoughts all the way back to their room where Killua would no doubt be waiting and would demand an explanation of where he had gotten too and what these errands had been.

The sight which met him back in their room was not quite what he had expected. If asked Gon would of said he had expected to find Killua surrounded by choco robot packets playing on some sort of video game. His best friend hunched over the coffee table with drawing supplies and surrounded by torn and scrunched up paper with a look of sheer determination on his face as they attempted to draw what looked like a portrait wouldn’t of even been on the bottom of the list.

“Hi Killua!” Gon called out to his friend as he watched the pale haired teen growl and crunch up yet another piece of paper. Signifying another failure in what ever he was attempting to do. “Sorry I was gone for so long, but I’m back now….” he surveyed the war zone of paper surrounding the coffee table on the floor and the completely overflowing waste paper basket. Was he really gone that long? “Are you okay Killua?” he asked a little concerned.

“Oh Hi Gon, I’m fine I guess…. “Killua looked up at his friend with a small smile, a pencil in one hand and another blank piece of paper in the other. “Just I can’t seem to get this dumb drawing to look right and it’s getting on my nerves that’s all. Did you enjoy your mysterious errands?” the blue eyed boy set about sketching once again, this time taking a bit more time over his starting point. Barely registering his friends approach to get a closer look at what he was drawing.

“Say Killua what are you trying to draw?” Gon was actually curious as he didn’t think his friend had any interest in artistic endeavours, although if his meeting with Hisoka had been any indication he had a lot to learn about his friends. Said friend paused and looked up at Gon with a blank expression.

“It’s stupid you’ll laugh at me.” he mumbled quietly. He didn’t want to tell Gon he had been reading a sappy romance story and that he was considering entering a fan art competition for it. Instead both teens sat in silence and Gon grabbed his own piece of paper and began to doodle without really paying attention to what he was drawing. His focus being interrupted by Killua shouting in frustration. “Not again! Why does it always come out looking like him...” Brown eyes met blue with concern.

“Killua what are you trying to draw?” He sneaked a glance at the paper before his friend could destroy it, surprised to see what looked fairly similar to Illumi except he had clearly tried to draw light hair and the length was shorter. “Are you trying to draw your older brother?”

“No I’m not!” Killua snapped, “Why would I draw that freak show! Illumi is strange as... and I don’t want to draw him, I’m trying to draw a character from this story I’ve been reading. He’s called Isaac and he’s the big brother of one of the main characters and the author has posted a competition for readers to submit drawings of him. The winner will get to preview the next chapter before they post it publicly and even get to suggest some ideas for the story as well as having their drawing featured on the website.” the assassin sighed and screwed up the latest failure and threw it over his shoulder. “It’s not important it’s just a stupid childish thing anyway.”

Gon looked down at his own doodles, he’d mainly drawn flowers and insects that he recalled seeing on his home of Whale Island as well as some he’d seen on Zevil island during the hunter exam. He thought for a moment before looking back up at his friend with a grin, “Describe Isaac to me and I’ll help you draw him, maybe the fact you have an older brother as scary as Illumi is affecting your drawing subconsciously? I’ll let you submit it though so if it wins you can give the author your ideas. Your the one reading it after all, say what sort of story is it?”

Killua looked away trying to hid his blush has he mumbled under his breath “it’s a romance story between these two guys, who are best friends since they were little kids… well they’re both in their late teens and one of them sort of has a crush on the other but he doesn’t want to ruin their friendship. Isaac is the older brother of the boy with the crush on his friend, the friend is an only child.” Killua glanced back at Gon who was scribbling notes in hasty messy handwriting, “I guess I kind of wish my brother was like Isaac you know? He’s so supportive of Kane and the fact he likes his friend Gene, but Kane’s family have high hopes for him to become this successful business man and to get married and have a bunch of kids. I guess I can relate to that a bit you know with my family having my whole future planned out for me?”

Gon simply nodded as he tried to picture in his mind the character as Killua spoke, reading off the character bio from the website which was still loaded on his phone. The information on Isaac was rather sparse but listed him as the eldest brother of the Zarath family who had made a name for himself in different field the main family and was until recently estranged as the black sheep. Like his younger brother Kane Zarath had blonde hair kept straight and shoulder length, and piercing eyes. The older brother’s were brown rather then the blue described in Kane’s bio however. Curiosity growing Gon asked Killua to describe the other two characters he had mentioned earlier while he idly started sketching a rough outline for his friend. As requested Killua first read out the description of Kane as the middle child of the Zarath family who was being groomed to take over his father’s business. Average height and build for his age, with pale blonde hair and striking blue eyes and an often haughty expression. The character was described as wanting to pursue a career sports rather then business which was a source of conflict with his family except for his older brother who had recently come back into the family fold. It went on to state quite plaining that Kane had been harbouring unrequited feelings towards his childhood best friend Gene Fontaine for a number of years, something which had kept to himself until he had recently confided in Isaac.

“Hmm so Isaac is like this super nice older brother then?” Gon asked innocently, finishing off his rough sketch, “How does he fit into the family if it says he only recently came back into the picture? Or would I have to read it to understand that?”

“Well the Zarath family have this media empire but from what Calliope has revealed about Isaac he was more interested in maths and science then journalism. So at first he was shunned by his parents until he made a name for himself and now they elders of the family have been trying to welcome him back into the family.” Killua explained matter of factly, “He’s also a lot older then Kane so he feels like he’s been cheated out his chance to be a big brother and is trying to make up for lost time.”

“That’s really cool! I mean it’s bad that he missed out on seeing his brother grow up but it’s nice that he’s trying to be a good brother now. Does it say anything about Gene? Also who is Calliope kind of a weird name.” Gon continued to fill in his sketch and missed the troubled look which crossed his friends face and the mention of Gene from the story.

“Oh sorry I should of said the author uses the pen name Calliope, I don’t know why or where it comes from.” the blue eyed teen looked thoughtful for a moment before going back to his reading a loud of the character information page, “To be honest Gon this may sound silly but Gene does kind of make me think of you a little. I mean he has dark hair and brown eyes like you, is an only child and he doesn’t see his dad that much but he isn’t completely absent from his life. He spends most of his time living with his extended family and hanging out and going to school with Kane.” he gave a humourless giggle at his realisation being cut off by the other boy suddenly holding up a rough but mostly complete drawing. If Killua had to describe his friends drawing he would say it looked like a mix of his brother Illumi but also of their friend Kurapika. Strangely it seemed to fit with the idea that Killua had in his mind, and he wondered if Gon was right about his own apprehension towards his own brother clouding his artistic thought process.

“How is that Killua? It’s not quite finished but I figured you could go over the rough sketch and finish off the little details yourself so that it will feel like it’s your own.” the happy go lucky teen couldn’t help the smile spreading across his face as he saw his friends mood brighten considerably. Carefully pushing the sheet of paper across the coffee table for his friend to take a closer look, the magicians words from earlier couldn’t help echoing in his mind. ‘ _Perhaps you can finally take your little friend on a date?_ ’ Shaking the thought away Gon got up and decided to head to the kitchenette to fix them both something to eat and drink. Mentally telling himself he should be used to the redheads mind games by now, but at the same time wondering if the other hunter knew something he didn’t.


	3. Chapter 3

    It had been a while since Illumi had last seen his 'problematic' associate, and still refused to think of the man as a friend. He stared down at the last message he'd received from Miluki, along with his target’s last known whereabouts. So it would appear he had returned to Heaven’s Arena, after all, that certainly did make things easier.

   Getting to Heaven’s Arena hadn’t been much of a challenge, getting into the building and onto the Magician’s floor, even less so – much to the veteran Assassins surprise. When he stepped out of the elevator and onto the plush carpeted hallway he came out of Zetsu – he wanted the other man to know he was here after all. Not having to care about the noise he made, he went through into the closest room first. Frowning when he didn't find who he was looking for, he made his way deeper into the large apartment. He searched through a sizeable lounge, kitchen and dining area, as well as a well equipped personal gym and what appeared to be some sort of reception room. That left two possibilities for the Magician’s location – if he was actually home. The bedroom or the bathroom. Neither of which were his first choice for where he would have liked to confront Hisoka. With a sigh, he reminded himself that he was a Zoldyck, and he had seen and done far worse than speak with a Hunter inside his house. With his head held high, he made his way to the part of the floor he had been hoping he would never have to see. Making a snap decision, he reached out and pushed open a door at random. He might have used slightly more force than was strictly necessary for the task. Wincing as the door swung a full 180 degrees and crashed into the wall next to it, he stood and tried to take in the sight in front of him. It was a bathroom. A large and ornate bathroom.

  “I’ll need you to pay for the door,” came the Magician's voice from the tub. It sounded rather disinterested. “Oh, and the damage to the wall as well. The owners, get a bit testy if anything gets broken.”

 Dark and not entirely vacant eyes moved from the door – which was hanging off one of his hinges – to where the voice had come from. The redhead was fully relaxed, eyes closed and laying back in the bathtub. A few more moments of silence passed between them before Hisoka spoke again.

 “Really Illumi you could just take a picture it would last longer, that way you could stare at me whenever you wanted.” Amusement seeped into the honeyed voice this time as the Magician finally opened his eyes and looked at Illumi.

 He was still standing stock still in the entrance of the room, gazed fixed on the man in front of him. Not a muscle twitched. Hisoka chuckled as he rose gracefully from the cooling water of his interrupted bath. The sound of dripping water the only thing that could be heard in the room as both men locked eyes.

 Illumi broke the silence first. “I hardly see why I should pay for the door when you shattered one of the windows in your clumsy attempt at getting into the Zoldyck estate, Hisoka. In case you’ve forgotten you've yet to pay for the repairs. Have you any idea how hard it is to find someone who will come to Kukuroo mountain?” Illumi's voice was as monotone as ever but none-the-less filled the tiled room. Not even Hisoka's mild smirk phased him, but as his eyes drifted away from the Magician's golden eyes, his speech came to an abrupt standstill. “Wait...” He said, and blinked before continuing, “You have a dick? I always thought you were...an overly muscular woman…”

  The question was met with a disappointed sigh as Hisoka fixed his visitor with a look of irritation, and Illumi thought, a small hint of surprise? Hisoka let the statement hang in the air between them and grabbed a towel to start drying himself off. Not a word was spoken as the redhead idly moved the plush cotton over his skin, taking his time and making sure no water was left before placing it back on the rail.

 Realising that Illumi wasn't going to say anything Hisoka quirked his lip and quipped, “It's just a pair of socks I’ve cleverly disguised using my texture surprise to look like one. Sometimes a girl just wants to know what it feels like to have a cock, you know?” He faced the Assassin and stretched to pull a pose, drawing even more attention to his crotch. Smirking when Illumi’s emotionless mask almost cracked. The Magician had to stop himself from laughing when Illumi almost visibly stopped himself from looking down. Feeling smug the naked man stalked, cat-like, towards the Illumi, closing the distance between them. “Of course I have a dick, I am a man...” he let his voice trail off as he came to stand immediately in front of the Assassin and moved to subtly block his exit path. Leaning down to whisper in his ear for dramatic effect, “you can touch it if you want to find out for yourself if it's real, I don’t mind...”

 That did it. The normally emotionless mask cracked just enough for Illumi to make a noise of surprise and take an unconscious step back. Amber eyes filled with triumphant amusement and looked directly into the suddenly startled dark orbs of the eldest Zoldyck. For the first time since the Magician had known him, Illumi looked genuinely unsure of what he should do next. Hisoka filed the development away for later study.

 Illumi coughed but held his ground. “When you’ve finished playing games Hisoka. I came here to talk to you about Kil and Gon, and their budding...relationship,” Illumi said, doing his best to try to get the conversation back on track, and pointedly ignoring the inquisitive look Hisoka was now giving him. “I don’t know if this was you're doing directly or your romance novel influencing things but he’s going on a date later today...with Gon, and I need you to come with me." At Hisoka's raised eyebrow he added, "So that we can keep an eye on them, I refuse to let Kil date without a chaperone.”  

 Hisoka gave a mock yawn. “Oh? Is that all?” he said, sounding suddenly bored. Illumi felt a tick start in his right eye.

 “No, you don’t get to ‘is that all’ me on this! You’re the one who said they’d make a cute couple and that I should let things happen. I may have promised not to harm Gon if he hurts Kil, but that doesn’t mean I won’t hurt you, Hisoka.” Illumi's naturally flat voice took on an edgier and more dangerous tone as tendrils of killing intent started to seep out into the air around him. They vanished almost as fast as they'd appeared once he realised the way Hisoka was looking at him. He watched as Hisoka's lips pulled up into a pleased smile and his amber eyes blew wide with what Illumi could only assume was arousal? Inwardly groaning Illumi pointedly moved his gaze back to the bathroom entrance refusing to allow his curious eyes to look elsewhere for confirmation. Why did he not kill this annoying clown when he had the chance? Oh yes, he reminded himself, sometimes his Nen makes him incredibly useful.

 “Illumi” Hisoka purred, “Don’t say things like that, you’ll get me all excited. Unless that is what you wanted...in which case, my bedroom is just through there?” The Magician gestured to a door that Illumi had previously not noticed and pushed. Illumi's throat tightened slightly as it silently opened. It was rare for Hisoka to be able to a reaction from his associate, and he was enjoying this immensely. “Although," he mused. "It occurs to me that you don’t actually know where this little outing is going to be, do you? Perhaps I could be persuaded to tell you if you make it worth my while..." His golden eye's flashed. "What do you say?”

 Finally having had enough of the games, Illumi decided that in this case, actions would speak louder than words. With an uncharacteristic roll of his eyes, Illumi grabbed Hisoka by his shoulders and spun him around to face his bedroom door. Pointedly ignoring the perverse moan coming from the man at the rough handling, Illumi shoved the Magician, hard, into his own bedroom. Once the redhead was safely on the other side of the wooden barrier, the Assassin grabbed the handle and held it closed.

 “Enough with the games Hisoka! Get some clothes on! Now!” The usually emotionless man shouted each word to further underline his point, before adding, “Normal clothes! Not your usual stuff, we need to be discreet.” The only indication that the Assassin's words had been heard, was the other man's signature giggle, along with the muffled sounds of drawers being opened.

******

  
**_Flashback – Two weeks earlier_**

   Killua sighed in relief as the warm water of his shower ran down his tense and aching muscles. After a morning of intensive training with Gon, it was a welcome sensation to feel the knots in his back slowly coming undone. His pleasure came to a premature end when the sound of frustrated yelling came from the lounge. Concern for his best friend took over, and Killua jumped out of the shower, pausing briefly to grab a towel before running to the other teen's aid. After imaging the worst, he was pretty underwhelmed to find Gon half lying on the couch and half on the floor. Arms limp at his sides as he gripped his cell phone in a vice-like hold, growling up at the ceiling.

 “Gon?” he tried to get the other’s attention, “Gon what’s wrong? Why are you yelling? I could hear you over the shower...”  
    
   Gon continued to stare at the ceiling as he mumbled to himself about everything being so dammed confusing along with something about annoying cryptic messages. Confused, Killua stepped closer to try and make out what Gon was saying. He'd completely forgotten that he was still wet from the shower and was now getting water all over the place. A few drops even hit Gon's bare legs, causing the boy to jump and sit up in surprise.

  
  “Killua? I thought you were in the shower…why are you standing there in a towel?” Brown eyes took in the sight of his nearly naked friend. A handful of water droplets were running down his chest, and a few more were dripping from the ends of his snowy hair. A lump formed in his throat. Trying to distract himself he looked up into his best friends eyes. It was a mistake. Killua was annoyed.  
    
 “Well I was enjoying a nice warm shower when I heard an idiot screaming, so I came to make sure his stupid-ass was okay,” he snapped. “Just what the hell is up with you anyway? First, you go on your mysterious day out and come back with all that money, then you decide you want us to travel back to my home country to visit Wing and Zushi - which I am fine with by the way. What’s got me worried is that you’re always glued to your stupid phone. Why?”  
   
  Gon had enough situational awareness to realise that he might be pushing his luck with the young Assassin if he lied to him. Laughing nervously he smiled up at his friend while trying to think of something to say that wouldn't get him into even more trouble. Unfortunately, that meant he wasn’t quick enough to stop Killua from swiping his phone. He tried to grab it back, but his reflexes were no match for the upright and highly mobile Assasin, and Killua easily dodged his flailing arms. Once he was happy he had put enough distance between them, Killua looked at the open message on the screen. He scowled at the contact name ‘Mad Hatter’ and tried to think about who on earth Gon would refer to by such an unusual nickname. The contents of the message didn’t make much sense either. He scanned the words again trying to make sense of it.

_From: Mad Hatter_   
_Well, I suggest if your little friend has a sweet tooth there are a lot of restaurants near to the arena famous for their deserts. Feel free to call if you need any more advice my adorable muse._

  Killua was about to ask Gon who this Mad Hatter was, and why they were calling him their muse when the phone was yanked back out of his hands. With a triumphant yell, Gon ran to the other side of the room where he blew a raspberry in his friend's direction. Killua laughed and shook his head at the Gon’s childish, but nevertheless endearing behaviour.

 “I’m fine Killua honestly. It’s like I told you I won that money in a silly prize draw that I forgot I'd entered back in Yorknew City.” The lie rolled off his tongue easily after all the time's he'd practised it in front of his bedroom mirror. There was no way he could tell Killua where that money had _really_ come from, and he didn’t think Hisoka would take it back even if he begged. “So I decided it would be nice to go visit our friends at Heaven’s Arena and maybe use the money to see Zushi’s next fight! Then afterwards...” he paused and scratched the back of his head with a nervous grin “I was thinking, maybe I could use what was left over to take you out somewhere nice. Kind of like a best friends date!”

  Blue eyes went wide as Killua replayed the words in his head over and over again. This was a dream, right? A cruel joke, did Gon somehow find out? In his shock, Killua tensed, every fibre of his being screamed at him to get away, that this couldn’t be real...but his friend wouldn’t try to hurt him like this, that wasn’t the sort of person Gon was. Relaxing as he saw the earnest hope in Gons big brown eyes, he made his choice.

  
  “That sounds great Gon,” he said, voice slightly cracking at the end, and now very aware of his semi-naked state. “I really should get back to that shower…” Killua didn’t wait for a response before turning on his heel and making his way back to the safety of the bathroom. He hadn't a clue what had just happened, but he was going to get to the bottom of it, one way or another.

  
******

  
_**Back in the Present**_

    There were a handful of clouds dotting the sky as Illumi and Hisoka made their way down the street. Both men were quiet as they got closer to the location of the date, the air around them beginning to smell pleasantly of baking bread. One pair of feet fell out of step with the other, as Illumi held back, watching intently as if he were trying to work out a puzzle. Feeling the gaze at his back, Hisoka also stopped and turned.  
    
  “You’re staring at me again, Illumi,” he said softly, “If you keep this up I’m going to get a complex.”  
    
   “I was just wondering where you got those trousers from?” Illumi replied in an even tone.

   “Oh you know how it is, I got them last time I was at the soup store. Why, where did you get yours?” Hisoka said mockingly and came to a standstill to enjoy the smell in the air. Casually, he checked the time and was satisfied that yes, they wouldn’t be late.

  
  “But they look so...” Illumi paused, trying to find the right word and prodded his lackadaisical ‘friend’ to start moving again. “Normal?” He finally said and saw Hisoka’s shoulders raise in a suppressed laugh.

  “I was simply trying to adhere to your request,” Hisoka said, matching his partner's flat voice and gave the other a sideways glance, looking for his reaction.

  “I suppose so. I just didn’t expect it to feel this disturbing to see you this way.” Illumi said in his usual monotone, ignoring the side eye he was getting from Hisoka, who had now stopped outside a small Bakery. The sign in the window proclaimed the shop to be, ‘Little Taste of Heaven, Bakery and Cafe.’ Before he had a chance to look into the window, Illumi’s attention was soon pulled away from the store by the sight of Hisoka, who had moved towards a large bush a few steps away.  
   
  “If my trousers bother you that much, I can take them off?” the amused redhead purred suggestively and tilted his head towards a bush they could both hide in. Amusement clear in his expression, Hisoka fought the urge to laugh before turning and striding into the cafe without turning back.

  “ _At least it started out less disturbing..._ ” Illumi thought aloud to himself, watching the magicians retreating back. He shook the thought of being crouched in a bush with a pants-less Hisoka away and followed him inside.  
    
   Once the door had closed behind them, they were both immediately hit with the smell of freshly cooking sweet pastries and other savoury options. A young waitress approached them and asked if they wanted to take advantage of the store’s current special for couples. The stoic assassin was about to politely decline when he felt Hisoka drape his arm around his shoulders.

  Speaking for them both, he said, “How thoughtful! That would be wonderful wouldn’t it sweetheart?” Hisoka turned to the other man who simply stared at him in confusion. “Don’t mind him, he’s still a little shy about openly dating. Would it be okay for us to take one of those cosy looking booths in the back?” He didn’t try to stop the smile that spread across his features as the young waitresses eyes went wide with glee, and a flush spread across her cheeks.

  “Certainly! This way, please, let's get you two seated, and one of my colleagues will be right with you to take your order.” The flush still hadn’t left the girls cheeks, and as she returned to the back to talk to her colleagues, she had a definite bounce to her step that wasn’t there before. Leaving in their wake a very amused Magician and an annoyed Assassin who was now staring at the former in displeasure.

  “Was that really necessary Hisoka?” Illumi grumbled, “You know she’s just going to go into the back and talk to her co-workers about us?” He was trying to resist the urge to stab the Magician with one of his nen infused needles and walk out. Taking a breath and counting backwards in his mind, he reminded himself why he was here. Who he was here for; _Killua, he was here for Killua._ The thought had barely finished when, with a small startle, he heard the jingle of the Bakery’s door. The familiar sound of his brother’s laugh floated through the air. It instantly grabbed Illumi’s attention, and he pointedly ignored Hisoka as he shamelessly flirted with their waitress beside him. His dark eyes watched impassively as the young girl who had seated them led the boys to another similar booth across the floor and halfway down from their own. He had a perfect view in order to be their unofficial chaperone.

  
  He was used to reconnaissance, it was part of his job, and the afternoon was relatively uneventful...at first. He sat contentedly, watching the two teenagers as he idly drank from his mug. He tried to keep his usual expressionless mask in place, ignoring the activities of his companion. _No need to worry too much_ , he thought. _After all, it looks like Kil is enjoying himself._ Illumi gave himself a mental pat on the back for keeping his composure. That was until his view started to become obscured by a growing tower of cards. At first, he’d seen fit to ignore Hisoka, who to begin with, had tried to get him to join him in a game of cards. He dismissed it as something that would draw too much attention. Hisoka had then decided to entertain himself with his phone, typing out what he could only assume were messages to random contacts, in-between sneaking glances over at their targets table. _Just what is he playing at now? Does he understand what discreet even means?_ Illumi cringed inwardly, but managed to avoid showing his irritation as he stared at the ever growing house of cards appearing between them.

  “Hisoka!” he said in a harsh whisper, “Please put those away. I don’t want Kil to see us...or Gon for that matter.” Keeping one eye on the teens as he contemplated the urge to knock over the cards but decided it would be beneath him to do something so petty. Choosing instead to poke the other man in the leg with one of his ever-present needles. Inwardly smiling at the slight jolt of Hisoka’s leg as the tip made contact with his knee, and the house of cards crumbled.  
    
  “That was uncalled for don’t you think?” Hisoka pouted, looking at the pile of cards that were once his tower. Frowning, he realised that Illumi hadn’t even looked at him when he had stabbed him in the leg because he’d just now turned to face him. “Illumi,” Hisoka said in an attempt to distract his companion, “What’s wrong? Do I have something on my face?”

  “No Hisoka, there is nothing on your face,” Illumi responded quietly. _That’s the problem._ Glancing back to his brother for a second, to make sure he hadn’t left, he again turned back to Hisoka. “So this is what you actually look like under all that clown paint?” He asked evenly.

  Hisoka arched an elegant eyebrow ready to make a scathing retort about how long it took the other to notice when his thought process was quickly interrupted. The sound of Killua calling to Gon that he’d be back after he’d found the bathroom gave him reason to pause. He needed to act quickly, or they’d be spotted. The boy would have to pass their table to find the toilets. Without saying a word, he swept the cards off the table. Once he was satisfied that they were hidden, he grabbed the other man tightly, holding him still, before planting a bruising kiss on the unsuspecting Assassin’s lips. He lingered a moment longer than strictly needed, before breaking off when he was sure that Killua had passed-by. Slowly, and with a pleased smile, he pulled back. As soon as the contact was broken he found himself pinned against his seat with one of Illumi’s needles at his throat.

  “What do you think you’re doing?” Illumi hissed, narrowing his eyes slightly as he glared at the Magician, who was still smirking up at him.

 “Keeping our cover from being blown,” Hisoka said calmly. “In case you hadn’t noticed your brother needed to walk past our table to go to the bathroom. Now I suggest you either unhand me and risk us being caught or…” His smile grew more predatory, “you could always kiss me back and make it look like we’re actually on a date...your precious Killua will never need to know you were spying on him.”

 “You planned this didn’t you?” Illumi said quietly, still not removing the threat of his needle from the other man’s pale neck. _How had he not seen this coming?_  He was about to pull back when the noise of the toilet door unlocking caught his attention. He tried to look and see if it was his brother while still maintaining their cover.  
    
  Not one to waste an opportunity, Hisoka took the risk of pushing the weapon away from his neck and pulling Illumi back in for another kiss. He strategically placed his arms around him to make it look as if they were in a lovers embrace. Illumi tensed at first but he had to admit that Hisoka had a point; he didn’t want to get caught. Letting his training take over he relaxed into Hisoka’s arms and, to the Magician’s surprise, kissed back with equal resolve. By the time Illumi decided to break the kiss, he was certain that any danger of them being caught had passed, and the two teens they’d been keeping an eye on were already happily making their way out of the door. They were chatting animatedly and giggling as it closed behind them.

  “Well, that was certainly unexpected,” Hisoka said, humming contentedly and batting his lashes towards friend. “Never in a million years would I have expected you to kiss me back…so...passionately”  
   
  “Don’t get any funny ideas Hisoka, I assessed the situation and realised that you were right, that’s all. The couples ruse was the best way forward.” Illumi tried to shut down any further attempts at intimacy by putting away his needles, that were now laying on Hisoka’s cards, forgotten for a few brief moments. _Although I have to admit, it wasn’t as unpleasant an experience as I thought it would be…That being said, I can not allow him to know I feel that way._

 “Oh, of course, Illumi, I wouldn’t expect anything less from one such as yourself.” Hisoka turned his attention to gathering up his cards, “I must say that this has been a wonderful distraction...I might even have some new exciting ideas for my story,” he teased. “Should you ever change your mind, you do know how to find me.”

  The Assassin remained motionless as he processed everything that had happened. _Change my mind about what?_ He considered asking, but he didn’t want to validate his accomplices actions any more than he already had; instead, he chose to let the moment pass in silence. If there was one thing he knew he could count on when dealing with Hisoka, it was that he was dependably unpredictable.

  “Well then, my dear Illumi, it has been a pleasure as always, but I really must be getting back home.” Hisoka’s melodic voice broke through Illumi’s contemplation. “I’ll pay the bill on my way out. It has, after all, been a rather pleasant outing.”

  Straightening his rumpled shirt as he stood up, the Magician made his way over to the counter while Illumi sat stock still in his seat. Hisoka chatted with the young woman that had greeted them when they had first entered, and settled the bill, as promised. Turning to Illumi, he blew a kiss in the Assassins direction, before giving a little wave and exiting the cafe humming happily. Illumi was left shaken and confused. His only consolation was that, now at least, he could process everything that had happened in his own time.


	4. Chapter 4

Nervous fingers played with a bracelet of braided black leather which adorned a slim wrist. The owner letting out a sigh of frustration as they replayed the moment they had received the gift. It was one of a set made by the one who had given it to him except the bracelets twin was coloured brown.  _Just like their eyes… oh Gon, why can’t I just tell you how I feel?_ Killua looked over at Gon who was happily walking besides him on their way to see Wing and Zushi so they could train once again with their old mentor and friend.

 

“Can you believe that Zushi is nearly eligible to challenge a floor master Killua?” Gon was practically bouncing with glee, “I’m so excited for him! It’s so cool that Wing asked us both to come over and do some extra training with him don’t you think?”

 

“Yeah Gon, it’s great. He’s worked hard for this, getting to the 200th floor and beyond is an achievement in and of itself.” Killua agreed but his voice didn’t quite hold Gon’s enthusiasm. He put his hands on the back of his head and leant back slightly taking in the sight of Heaven’s Arena towering over all the buildings around them.

 

Gon giggled from beside him, “Oh yeah do you remember when we got to the 200th floor and then Hisoka was there, he was all ‘ _you’re not ready for this floor_ ’. Then just sat there blocking us with his nen?” Killua could already feel the excitement in the air. “Man it felt so good when we got our own nen and we went back didn’t it?”

 

“Yeah that was pretty cool. Your fight with Hisoka was something amazing to watch to, shame that magician is such a sneaky bastard.” Killua turned his gaze from the looming building and back to Gon. “I’ve been thinking, I mean it would be great to train some more with Zushi but if it’s okay with you I might just take a walk? Call me when you’re done training though yeah?”

 

“I don’t mind Killua, and I’m sure Zushi will understand if you need some time for yourself. After all you do have a history with this place.” Gon was feeling a bit disappointed but he didn’t want to upset his friend.

 

“Thanks Gon, you’re the best.” Killua grinned at his friend and gave him a friendly slap on the back. “I think there’s a park not far from here so I’m going to head over there and try clear my head a little. Don’t over do it without me there to keep an eye on you alright?”

 

“Me and Zushi are going to train so hard you’ll wish you had come with me Killua!” Gon replied playfully.

 

Both teenagers grinned at each other and burst into a fit of laughter. Once the merriment had died down Gon reached out for Killua and pulled him into a loose embrace. Killua’s breath hitching ever so slightly at the unexpected contact, cheeks becoming flushed. Shyness getting the better of him Killua pulled away first hiding the colour on his face by staring at his shoes.

 

“Everything will be fine Killua you’ll see!” Gon’s excited voice pulled him back to the present, “Don’t forget you’re my best friend and that’s never going to change. I really do need to get going to Wing’s house though if I’m to avoid being late.” Flashing his shy friend another happy smile Gon took off running in the direction of Wings home. The sudden departure meaning he didn’t hear the reply.

 

“Yeah I don’t doubt that… but that might just be the problem Gon.” Killua’s voice was quiet and melancholy. He remained in place watching the retreating form of his excited friend as they ran off. Waiting until they had turned the corner and moved out of sight of his sapphire gaze. Letting out a sigh the teen stuck his hands in the pockets of his cargo shorts and turned on his heel. Heading in the opposite direction wanting to be alone with his thoughts for a little while.

 

Letting his feet take him where they wanted he wandered without aim through the city streets not paying attention to where he was going. It wasn’t like he had to worry about getting lost with such a highly visible and famous landmark he could rely on to find his way back. On his travels the young assassin found himself on a somewhat familiar street, with a somewhat comforting scent filling the air around him. The sensation caused him to finally look up from his feet pounding the pavement and take in his surroundings. That smell was coming from across the street he spared a glance across the road, mouth opening in surprise at what he saw. Tucked behind a row of neatly trimmed bushes was the cafe that Gon had taken him to, he could just make out the signage in the large window confirming it was the same place. Memories flashed through his head of the strange couple he had spotted kissing in the back of the store and he caught himself smiling at the mental image. The smile twisting to become bitter as he kicked a loose stone by his foot, if only he’d had the courage to kiss Gon…

 

Spying an empty bench a short way down the street he made his way over to the seat and flopped himself down heavily. Staring again at the braided leather accessory he was now sporting on his left wrist.

 

“ _Here Killua!” Gon had held up a small black box and he’d felt his heart in his throat as he’d watched intently;_ _waiting to see_ _what his friend did next, “I made this for you as a symbol of our bond as best friends. It’s infused with my nen! So it can’t be broken unless our friendship breaks first that is. I got Wing to help me, after I remembered that promise band he put on me.” Gon had then opened the box to show the matching bracelets in black and brown leather, putting his own on his left wrist and insisting Killua do the same with his. “We should wear them always to that we’ll never forget that we’re friends. I’m going to wear mine on my left wrist so it’s closer to my heart.”_

 

Killua balled his hands into fists as he fought the tears of frustration that were starting to form. He wouldn’t cry. He was a Zoldyck and he was better then this. Despite his best effort a single tear made it’s way slowly down towards his cheek. Hastily wiped away before he could be seen to be crying in public, Killua took a deep breath and attempted to compose himself. Sitting here so close to that bakery was clearly not his smartest decision. Willing himself back up onto his feet, he resumed his wandering. No destination in mind. He simply wanted to lose himself for a few hours.

 

Not caring enough to pay attention to where he was going, and lost in his own thoughts Killua eventually found himself outside a small arcade. Glancing up at the adverts on the door he saw that they were holding a tournament for a few of their racing games. he felt an involuntary grin appear on his face. He’d had always been good at those types of games. Maybe this was the distraction he’d been looking for? Still smiling he reached out, pushing the door open, and confidently striding inside. Unfortunately the distraction didn’t last as long as he’d hoped, the arcade was fairly out of the way, in a quieter part of the city centre. The combination of location and poor advertising meant that there wasn’t as many people to help take his mind off his crush as he’d of liked. Still he was determined to enjoy what little he could for as long as possible. In what felt like no time at all he’d managed to enter, compete in and reach the final few rounds of the competition, and boredom was beginning to set in. It didn’t help that most of the games in the arcade were old and couldn’t keep his attention for long. He’d played them enough in his younger years, that he knew every winning move. In an attempt at maintaining the distraction he decided to waste time between rounds on a fairly battered dance machine. Years of training to hone his reflexes and reaction speed meant playing on even the highest difficulties barely made him break a sweat. Still, his intense focus on the arrows flying up the screen meant that he nearly missed his name being called by the tournament organizer. Finishing his current game, he jumped down and headed over to the judges, humming thoughtfully. The racing game itself would allow him to kill an hour, an hour and a half at best. He wasn't playing it for the prize, but still...he thought about Gon. What would Gon do? Would he throw the final? He laughed as he pictured it. His kind-hearted friend would bow out gracefully for sure, knowing that his opponent stood no chance against someone with his training.  
  
But Killua wasn't one to give away a victory. Smiling now, he headed over to his opponent stood by the racing machines. He looked over to see his the teenager was still seated in the 2ndplayer position. Killua grinned he always did prefer to play in the 1stplayer position. Without speaking he settled himself in behind the controls.

  
  


“Good luck!” He barely registered his challenger speaking to him, “and may the best driver win” the dark haired boy said. He was clearly trying to be friendly.

  
  


“Sure whatever,” Killua replied. He hadn’t come here to make friends.

  
  


The final round, as expected wouldn’t take long, and he found himself facing the prospect of having to once again return to his aimless wandering.It seemed as if this was becoming a never ending quest to rid himself of his confusion over Gon. Before he knew it, the game had reached the final lap. Again, he thought about whether or not to throw the match and let the other boy take the prize; but his Zoldyck pride rose up and he decided he couldn’t. He played to win, and he scored his victory with a Cheshire cat grin. Gracious in his loss, the other competitor offered his hand to congratulate Killua on his win. Killua just stared as if he’d never seen a handshake before. Tension grew between the two boys, but eventually Killua chose to break it by getting up and heading to claim his prize. He didn’t look back. It was more tokens to use in the arcade. He had no intention of coming back here so, ultimately the prize was worthless to him.

  
  


“Perfect,” Killua said to no one in particular, staring at his pointless prize. Without warning the bracelet encircling his arm began to feel heavy. It was almost as if by being imbued with Gon’s nen, it was also, somehow imbued with the teens sense of fairness as well.

  
  


Killua sighed as he picked up his worthless tokens from the front desk, thanking the man running the event as he did so. With the prize in hand, he looked for the kid he had stolen first place from. He found him on a fighting machine. Without a word, he approached the other boy and waited patiently for him to finish. He stared impassively as he watched the boy complete round after round flawlessly.He didn’t know how long he stood watching. If the other boy was aware of his audience he didn’t show it. Killua was surprised by his sudden inability to act. This wasn’t like him. Normally he would only experience this sense of paralysis when under the effect of his eldest siblings manipulation. He let his eyes fall to the bracelet. It still felt heavy on his wrist. He knew it contained Gon’s nen. Could it be that he was feeling the weight of his friends disappointment? Was this the disappointment Gon would feel in him if knew how childish he’d been? Overwhelmed, he threw the prize envelope on top of the kids backpack and clutched at the sides of his head, as his fear of disappointing the boy he loved warred with the intense childhood training he’d endured.

  
  


Trying to regain control over his emotions, he left the small arcade, refusing to let the chaos he was feeling overflow onto the people inside. Not caring where he ended up, and barely noticing that the once bright blue sky had become grey, he walked on. Overwhelmed, Killua tried to wrestle with the lessons of his past and figure out how to reconcile them with everything Gon had taught him about friendship. He couldn't bear the thought of Gon's disappointed face.The brisk power-walking pace became a jog and soon turned into a run as he tried to escape the feelings he didn’t yet understand. Why did the idea of his friend being upset with him fill him with such dread? On and on he ran ignoring the store fronts, and not caring that the people in his way had to move or be run down.

  
  


He only slowed when he felt the ground start to tilt in a gentle incline, as he came back to his senses, he realised that he’d managed to stop right at the edge of a riverbank. Sapphire eyes widened in surprise as he realised he’d run all the way to the park just outside his current hotel. Could this be related to Gon's bracelet? Had his nen done this?  Without warning, he felt exhaustion wash over him like a wave. He fell to his knees at the river's edge and stared at his reflection; sneering at the white haired teen looking back at him through the water’s surface.

  
  


“What would somebody as pure as Gon ever want with someone as tainted as you?” he hissed, but the image before him didn’t answer. “As if you could ever deserve somebody like him…“he paused before continuing, “I still find it hard to believe he’s your friend. Why can’t you be grateful for what he’s given you? Are you so selfish that you can’t be satisfied with what you have?” His voice was barely a whisper and it was for that reason that he heard the familiar buzzing coming from his pocket. The sensation pulled him from his head and into the present. He fished the phone from his shorts and his lips pulled up into a strained smile when he saw the caller ID. Of course it was Gon. From the look of it, he’d been trying to reach him for a while. He saw several missed calls along with a dozen missed messages from his friend. Had he been that lost in his own thought's that he'd missed Gon's calls? He braced himself for the lecture he was about to receive and pressed accept.

  
  
  


******

  
  


In another part of the city, Gon was pacing back and forth in Wing’s living room while the older man watched in silence over the top of his book. Gon had finished training with Zushi a short time ago and had been enjoying his time catching up with his mentor. However, he was conscious that he’d been at Wing’s home for quite a while now, and he hadn’t heard from Killua at all. He was starting to worry. He knew his friend wanted to clear his head but he’d expected that he would’ve come back by now. It wasn’t like Killua to avoid training. He even went as far as to drag Gon out of bed if he tried to avoid it himself. With an intense look on his face Gon listened to the sound of ringing as he tried, once again, to contact his best friend. He was about to give up when the call was picked up.

  
  


“Killua!” he shouted down the phone, voice a strange mix of excitement and concern, “I’ve been trying to call you for ages, are you okay? You’re not hurt are you? Do you need me to come and get you?” Gon frowned when Killua’s response was a bemused laugh. “Killua don’t laugh at me I was really worried! You’re my best friend I don’t know what I’d do if anything bad happened to you.”

  
  


Becoming engrossed in his conversation with Killua, Gon nearly bumped into Zushi who was coming back into the living room. He flashed his friend a smile in apology but continued to listen to Killua’s story about entering a racing game tournament.

  
  


“That sounds great Killua, but I was wondering, where are you now?” Gon paused to allow the other to answer, “Oh the one next to the hotel? I can come and meet you there on my way back I don’t mind… Sure I’ll be there soon wait for me okay?” Wrapping up his phone call Gon looked over to where Wing and Zushi were sitting watching him.

  
  


“Will you be leaving us so soon Gon?” Wing asked seeing Gon putting his phone away, “I take it we won’t be seeing Killua today after all.” He placed his book down on the coffee table, marking his page carefully and rising so he could see his guest out.

  
  


“Yeah…I’m sorry to run off Wing but I am a bit worried about Killua. He’s not been himself today...” Gon glanced out the window at the now dull sky, “It’s not like him to not want to train. He’s at the park now though so I’m going to go make sure he’s okay! Thank you for inviting me over Wing and thanks for training with me Zushi!”

 

Feeling eager to get back to the park to make sure Killua really was okay, Gon grabbed his bag and made his way over to the front door. In a few moments he was joined by Wing who politely saw him out. Gon turned to flash his friends a friendly smile and waved to Zushi who he spotted waving from the window. Satisfied he turned and started to type out a text to Killua to let him know he was on his way.

  
  


Back in the small house Zushi turned to Wing with a questioning expression, “Master Wing do you think Gon’s realised yet?”

  
  


“Probably not Zushi” Wing said, sitting back down on the comfortable sofa and reclaiming his book from the coffee table. “However, I have a feeling that he’ll figure it out soon enough.”


	5. Chapter 5

Hisoka groaned as he felt the daylight filtering into his bedroom. The curtains were slightly parted and he groaned. He wasn’t quite ready to leave the comfortable confines of his bed just yet. Instead he reached for the unused pillow on the bed besides him and dragged it over his eyes. The victory was short lived. Soon enough the sound of his morning alarm was ringing in his ears. Cursing inwardly he removed the pillow, throwing back onto the sheet and rolled over to turn off the alarm. Realising he wasn’t going to be getting any more sleep he reluctantly pulled the warm duvet off his body. Stifling a yawn as he moved to sit on the side of his overly luxurious bed. He spied his phone out of the corner of his eye and reached over to the bedside table to pick it up. At least there was a potential distraction to keep his mind off the fact that he was awake.There was nothing. No missed calls, no unread messages. Nothing. He tossed it aside. It no longer held his interest.

 

 

 _Hmm so Illumi is still ignoring me…_ He thought to himself standing up and beginning to stretch, as he began warming up for his morning workout. Hisoka had always taken great pride in his natural strength but even he knew the value of regularly working out. With a sigh he left the bedroom and made his way down his hallway towards his small private gym. He made a slight detour to the kitchen to grab some bottled water, before grabbing a hand towel and, humming to himself, headed off for his workout. Glancing up at his schedule he saw that he’d pencilled himself in for weight training, followed by yoga and flexibility exercises. Smiling, he strode over to his weights. Living alone had it’s perks. Working out in your underwear was one of them.

 

Once he felt satisfied with the morning’s workout Hisoka put away his weights and yoga mat in their respective places. Then walked back to the kitchen still in just his shorts, he enjoyed the feeling of the hallways plush carpet between his toes as he walked. Humming a tune to himself as he placed the empty water bottle in the bin and continued in the direction of his lavish bedroom. Eyeing the still damaged bathroom door as he went past with a small sigh, _I still need to get that fixed_ , he reminded himself. For now he had his heart set on a warm shower to loosen up the knots which still remained on his back and shoulders. Letting his only item of clothing fall to the floor in a pool around his feet he made his way into the small en-suite shower room and reached into the cubicle to turn on the water. While he waited for the water warm up he gave himself an appraising look in the large mirror that hung up on the wall. Liking what he saw he struck a couple of poses, chuckling to himself as the mirror steamed up obscuring his view of his sculpted form. _Looks like the shower is ready,_ was his last thought as he stepped under the spray with a contented sigh as the warm water ran over his broad shoulders and back.

 

******

 

The sight that greeted Gon that morning as he made his way from the bedroom of his shared hotel suite brought a childlike grin to his face. After he had reunited with Killua at the nearby park they had picked up some food and returned home; talking late into the night. Eventually Gon had decided that he did need to sleep. It had been a long day of training and Wing had not gone easy on him. Killua had sighed and said that he had a few things he needed to sort out before he came to bed. Gon had been surprised but nodded and left his best friend to it, telling him to make sure he didn’t stay up too late because he had plans for the next day.

 

Apparently Killua hadn’t listened, because when Gon wandered into the living room, brushing sleep from his eyes, he found his best friend asleep with his face against his laptop keyboard. Gon giggled despite himself. Kil looked ridiculous with his cheek pressed against the keys. He felt his stomach rumble and was about to go and find himself some breakfast when he heard a small noise, and did Kil just shiver? Killua must be cold sleeping at the table like that… Gon thought, and looked around the room for a blanket. Nothing. Determined to help his friend he went back to his unmade bed and pulled the covers off. As an afterthought he grabbed a pillow as well.

 

As carefully as he could he walked up to the sleeping boy and noticed that the laptop screen was still on. Curiosity peaked he glanced momentarily at the screen just long enough to see a pink banner at the top of the page and a text box filling with random letters from the cheek still resting on the keyboard. Feeling guilty for invading the other’s privacy he frowned at his own actions. Killua was his friend, he shouldn’t be trying to spy on him. Yes he was worried but he could always ask Killua about it when he finally woke up, couldn’t he? Still something about the page felt like he’d seen it before, he just wasn’t sure where. The way Kil was lying meant that it was almost impossible for him not to see the screen. Besides it’s not like was intentionally trying to invade the other’s space, he was just taking care of him, wasn’t he?

 

Hesitantly brown eyes moved back to look at the computer screen, he could still see that pink banner and could just about make out a couple of words above it: Calliope’s Amusements. _Where have I see that before?_ Gon didn’t get long to dwell on the question. His friend let out a quiet sigh in his sleep and Gon turned to the task at hand: He had to make sure Kill was comfortable. Steeling himself he let go of the blanket he was still holding onto and turned his attention back to the pillow. _How am I going to get this under Killua’s head without waking him up? If he’s still asleep at this time he probably needs it._ Taking his time so not to wake the other up Gon reach out and very gently placed one hand on Killua’s shoulder. Fighting the urge to pull back when he felt the other tense for a moment, he held on and felt the boy relax back into sleep. Keeping his movements slow and fluid, as if he were dealing with a sleeping animal he didn’t want to wake, he placed the pillow on the table next to his friend’s head. Next he using his free hand he reached out to gently push the laptop, holding his friends head up as he did. Stopping briefly at any signs of stirring before continuing. It took a few tense moments but Gon did eventually manage to manoeuvre his still thankfully asleep friend onto the pillow. Happy with his success he turned to pick up the discarded blanket and loosely draped it over the other’s back and shoulders. That just left the laptop to deal with, should he leave it alone or turn if off? What if Killua had something open he hadn’t saved, he didn’t want to cause any lost work. Deciding that the light coming from the screen would surely be affecting Killua’s sleep he settled on closing the lid but leaving the device switched on, Gon had been about to close the lid when Killua’s voice besides him made him freeze.

 

“ _Why don’t you like me, Gon?”_ the words were slightly muffled by the pillow. Taken aback by the sudden mumbling Gon froze with his hand hovering just above the screen; from his position he could now clearly see the open webpage.

 

“But I do like you Killua” Gon whispered back, eyes falling on the ‘contact Calliope’ page on the bright computer screen. The message box was currently a mess of random characters from his friend having slept on his keyboard. _Why would he?..._ Shaking thoughts of why Killua could possibly think he didn’t like him Gon closed the laptop, obscuring his view of the oddly familiar website. Still confused, he stood by the table looking between the now closed laptop to his sleeping friend. Part of him wanted to wake Killua and ask why he was saying such strange things in his sleep, but the other half of him told him to leave it be. Shaking the thought’s from his head, he turned to go back to fixing himself some breakfast. He’d taken a few steps towards the kitchenette when he heard his friends tired voice.

 

“Gon?” Killua had woken up and was rubbing the sleep from his eyes, “Did you move my laptop?”

 

******

 

Back in his apartment Hisoka continued to run through his morning routine, he’d enjoyed the relaxing shower and was now wearing a clean pair of loose knee length shorts. He wasn’t planning to leave home today, and didn’t expect to have any visitors so opted to leave his hair down to dry on it’s own after pat drying the excess water from his locks. On his top half was a baggy pale pink shirt. It had playing cards in the shape of a fan along with the word lucky across it’s front. His laptop lay open and momentarily forgotten on his living room table while he prepared himself a breakfast smoothie, he didn’t feel like getting hyped up on caffeine today. He looked down at his phone, contemplating sending a text to Illumi. _It’s not like I need Illumi to keep myself from being bored. True I don’t have anything important planned but_ _I can_ _find something to keep_ _myself_ _occupied._ He was still staring at the phone screen when he heard the familiar jingle from his computer: It had finally finished loading. He added some protein powder to his concoction, and gave the blender another quick blast before pouring the smoothie out into a glass. Taking a curious sip he hummed with surprised delight; this mix could well become a new favourite. Pocketing his phone, he made his way over to his newly awoken computer.

 

As he didn’t have anything else planned, and couldn’t foresee any distractions on the horizon, he decided to check on his inbox, hoping he’d find something interesting to occupy himself with. One of the things he hadn’t counted on when starting his pet project was becoming popular enough to receive fan mail. The idea still seemed strange to him, even after months of working on his story. Continuing to sip slowly he skimmed through his unread messages. Most of them were the same. Readers offering encouragement, some fans asking questions or even sending him their drawings of his characters. _How predictably boring,_ he sighed to himself. Hisoka had been about to turn his attention to reviewing his latest draft when one subject linecaught his attention amongst all the others. The subject was two words: PLEASE HELP. Eye brow arched in curiosity he decided to click on the message, golden eyes widening in surprise as he read the contents.

 

_Subject: PLEASE HELP_

 

_Hello._

 

_I feel strange writing to you like this... I mean you must get tonnes of fan mail, the chances of you even seeing this are probably really small. Still I've been reading your story for a while now, I'm a really huge fan! You probably hear that all the time, but it’s true._

 

_So yeah, anyway, from the stuff you write I'm sure you would understand._

 

_The thing is, I like this guy. I really like him a lot! He's actually my best friend, my first best friend. Kinda pathetic right?_

 

_Not that I don't mind being friends, we have a lot of fun together and I really do enjoy spending time with him regardless. It's just recently he's been confusing me. He's always glued to his phone like he's got a hidden girlfriend and doesn't want to hurt my feelings. Then he surprised me by saying he wanted to take me out on a date, and it was nice and all. He knows I love sweet things and he took me to this amazing desert place. That was all really nice but then he gave this present._

 

_He made it himself, and he made one for himself too. It's like a friendship bracelet, he said it's a promise he's always going to be by my side. As my friend._

 

_Please you're the only person I can think of asking for help, I don't know how to tell him that I think I want more. I don't want to ruin our friendship either. What can I do? What should I do? I feel like I'm being selfish._

 

_Your loyal fan, K._

 

Hisoka stared at the message for a few moments, it wasn’t what he usually got sent. He hadn’t ever considered he would get approached for relationship advice, still something about what they had written tugged at his memory. Didn’t he recently provide venue suggestions to his little apple...for a date he’d had planned to take a friend on? He looked down the hallway in the direction of his bathroom. That day Illumi broke in he insisted we tail Gon and Killua… His thoughts trailed off and he looked back at the message, the sender had signed with their initial: K. Still could it be? Was Killua actually writing to him for advice about his feelings for Gon?

 

 _Oh this is perfect!_ He held onto his shoulder to steady himself as he felt amusement bubble up inside. It erupted out in a hysterical giggle. Covering his mouth with his free hand as he tried to calm himself. He cast his mind back to that day in cafe, he could vaguely recall overhearing the boys from where seated. Did Gon mention something about a gift? Hisoka frowned, he knew he hadn’t told Gon to give a gift and he hadn’t been asked about gifts. Not that he would have known what to suggest but it seemed like his little fruit had decided that on his own. _Handmade too, how sweet you are Gon but this leaves me with a dilemma. What if this isn’t Killua?_ Almost as if to reassure himself that it was his apple’s best friend he re-read the message once more, and then once again. Almost as if he was trying to commit the words to memory. The more he thought about it the more he was convinced it was Killua. It had to be, after all Kane and Gene were based off Killua and Gon respectively. It made sense to Hisoka, that if Killua had been reading the story he would start to read into it and assume as the author he would understand. Now that left one question in the magician’s mind, how should be respond?

 

Unsure how to proceed Hisoka leant back in his chair, sunshine eyes appraising the ceiling as he was lost in thought. He could just ignore the message and see how things played out on their own, or he could reply to the teens plea for assistance. He pinched the bridge of his nose, it wasn’t in his nature to care about helping other people. However this was Killua, and it could make Gon happy. It was 50-50 at best however, and Hisoka didn’t particularly like those odds if he was being honest with himself. Returning his gaze to his laptop, he stared at the email. It was open as if taunting him with his inability to decide.

 

Finally making his choice, he clicked reply. He considered his words carefully as he resumed drinking from his nearly forgotten smoothie. . There were a few approaches he could take in his reply, he could be helpful and offer some actual advice, provide some unhelpful advice. Or he could simply thank the mysterious ‘K’ for their interest but say that he couldn’t advise. Decisions, decisions. Hisoka tapped his long fingers against the tabletop as he thought about what to do, what to say and how to say it. A cheeky smile broke out across his face as he thought how angry Illumi would be if he ‘accidentally on purpose’ sent his beloved sibling to a gay porn site. The other man wouldn’t be able to ignore him then. As soon as the idea crossed his mind he dismissed it with an uncharacteristic scowl morphing his features. Unbidden his thoughts took a turn down into his own memories, of times he much preferred to leave buried and his own introduction to _relationships._ His eyes narrowed and he shook the recollections away with a growl, no if there was any chance this was Killua he needed to be helpful, it was the only way his fruits would ever fully blossom. As strange as that would be for someone like him. His plan of action decided he closed the blank e-mail for now; first he needed to do some research. If indeed Killua was interested in his precious Gon, then he was going to make sure Killua treated him properly. After all only the _best_ was good enough for his precious sapling.

 

******

 

Back at the hotel Killua was currently wrapped up in a blanket on the sofa glowering at the ceiling. He had barely moved from this position since waking up to find Gon had moved his laptop, outwardly he was keeping up a facade of irritation. Internally he was panicking. The last thing he remembered before falling asleep was that he had been running through his options for who to ask for advice about his growing feelings for his friend. One by one he had ruled them out, until, finally, he settled on e-mailing the author of his favourite romance story. He hoped they would understand his situation after all he very much felt like Kane Zarath pining for his friend Gene. Killua knew he had started to write out his message, he just didn’t know if he had hit send before sleep had finally claimed him.

 

Thoughts and worries about Gon seeing the unsent plea for help wouldn’t leave him alone. What was he going to do now? Would Gon be upset with him? Would they think he was ungrateful for not being happy with his friendship? Groaning he buried himself further into the blanket and tried to ignore the world around him. _I shouldn’t have gotten so mad at him,_ he chastised himself, _Gon had said he hadn’t seen anything. We’re best friends I really should have trusted him more._ Currently he was alone in their hotel as Gon had stormed out after Killua had accused him of invading his privacy. Both teens had felt wronged by the other. Looking up at the clock on the wall Killua realised that it had been several hours since Gon left. Just where could he have gone? Lowering his gaze he spotted his phone. Steeling himself for the cold air outside of his blanket burrito, Killua sighed and reluctantly pulled back the covers. Rearranging them over his shoulders, despite the room not being as cold as he’d remembered. He crossed the room and sat back down at the table, eyeing the pillow Gon had left there earlier. Oh Gon…

 

He reached for his phone, topping mid stretch when he heard a familiar ping from his laptop, he’d just received a new email. Had he actually sent the message? Eager to see if his last hope for help had come through, he left the phone where it was, and pulled his laptop closer. Eager eyes scanned his inbox for any unread emails. There at the top was the message he’d been hoping for; RE: HELP PLEASE. He swallowed the sudden lump in his throat as he clicked; both excited, and frightened, to see what the author had replied.

 

 _Subject: RE: HELP PLEASE_  
  
Hello K,

 

_Firstly let me say I always enjoy hearing from my fans and it's a pleasure to receive your message. I am very flattered that you sought my advice about what I am sure must be a confusing issue for you._

 

_Your message was brief but it was touching and heartfelt and I feel compelled to advise you as best I can. As I don't have any idea of how old you and your friend currently are, I will have to keep this family friendly. As you refer to my work as the reason you think I can understand, so I am going to assume you and your friend are both 'guys'._

 

_The way you describe your friend makes me think you are still quite young so you may be wondering if you are gay or not. To this I would advise, you that what is most important, is that you work out whether or not you have romantic feelings for him. You have told me that he has taken you on a date, and he made a promise to stay by your side always. Have you considered that maybe this vow to be by your side is his way of trying to gauge if you like him back? Always is simply another way of saying forever after all, and forever is a very long time. Besides lots of relationships start out as just friends, there is absolutely nothing wrong with that._

 

_Also your friend being on his phone constantly might be him seeking advice from others, just like you have sought advice from me. If he's as worried as you are then it's not a surprise that he wouldn't be very open about it. Why don't you try taking him out?_

 

_You mention you like sweet things, and they took you somewhere with that detail in mind. Is there anything you know that your friend likes as much as you like sweets? You should be able to get a good feel for if your interest is indeed returned by how they react. Presents are a nice touch if you can think of something equally meaningful. However I would caution against trying to 'one up' them, you don't want to make it a contest lest you accidentally scare them off._

 

_Have a think about their hobbies, what do they enjoy the most?_

_Is there anyway you can combine any of them into a day out for the two of you perhaps? I truly wish I could be of more help, but with such little information it is difficult. That being said do feel free to keep an eye out for the next chapter as things between your favourite couple Kane and Gene will be progressing in terms of their relationship. Maybe it will provide some fruitful inspiration for you?_

 

_Do let me know if you need any more advice, the more detail you are okay to share the more helpful I can be._

 

_with affection, Calliope._

 

It felt surreal for Killua as he read the reply, he hadn’t expected to receive a response so quickly if at all. Even then he had expected some sort of automatic reply but this was more then he could of hoped for. As he tried to take in the advice he was still in disbelief that they hadn’t brushed him off, they were offering him hope. One line in particular jumped out at him: _Always is simply another way of saying forever after all, and forever is a very long time._ That was true wasn’t it? Gon had swore to be by his side always. Could he really dare to hope that it was a sign of mutual interest? That his friend wanted him around forever?

 

With a wave of excitement Killua began recounting all the things he knew Gon enjoyed, most of which revolved around being outdoors. He supposed that his friend had grown up on a remote island, with no other kids his age, and the only thing he had to do was explore. Still that gave him enough to work with; perhaps he could find a way to take Gon back to Zevil island? It was a place of significance for them both. He smiled as he thought back to the Hunter exam where he’d first met Gon. How surprised he had been to find another 12 yr old there, and how easily Gon had accepted him. Even after finding out that he came from a family of assassins, Gon had never been afraid of him. Neither had Kurapika or Leorio, and for the first time in his life he had felt like he had people who accepted him. Gon though, had been the first. That was why he was special to the young assassin and always would be. The more he thought about it the more he felt like it could work, he would take Gon into his element - the outdoors. Once there they could go fishing again, just like they had on Whale Island...and camp out under the stars. Images of an evening sitting around a campfire came to mind. That would be as good a time as any to tell him, surely? It wasn’t a romantic candle lit dinner but he doubted Gon would appreciate anything so fancy.

 

Next, Killua decided he should plan for what they would do if he was lucky and Gon accepted his advances; he’d want to celebrate. On the other hand if Gon didn’t then he would need to plan something to take his mind off it, Gon’s as well. While he was idly browsing through various travel websites an advert for a new theme park opening on the island nation of Jappon caught his eye. Perfect! If things went well it was the perfect place for them to celebrate their new relationship...or, Killua thought, to reaffirm their friendship if it went wrong. He clicked on the advert to view the parks website, it wasn’t due to open for another week but that wouldn’t be an issue, taking into account the travel time needed to get to Zevil Island, then back to Jappon, he’d have plenty of time. All he needed to do was persuade Gon it was time to move on, and allow him to choose where they went next. Killua had just bookmarked the webpages when he heard the hotel room door open; Gon had finally returned home. Followed by the rustling sound of bags and the door closing. Had he brought food back with him?

 

“I’m back Killua!” Gon shouted happily as he skipped into the room and over to his friend, “Sorry I was gone for so long… I didn’t mean to make you feel like I don’t trust you...”  
  
Killua looked at his friend with a small smile and held his hand up to quiet him, “I’m the one who should be apologising to you Gon. You were just trying to make sure I wouldn’t catch a cold and here I was thinking the worst of you.”

 

“Well if you don’t want me to apologise I guess you won’t want the pastries I got you from that bakery we went to then?” Gon teased and stuck his tongue out, holding up the plastic bag he was holding. He giggled at the sight of his friends eyes widening in surprise as they looked at the bag.

 

“What? Of course I want them Gon!” Killua sat up straight in his seat and tried to reach for the bag, growling in annoyance when the bag was deliberately moved out of his reach, “Gon, why are you teasing me? I said I was sorry for getting angry with you.”

 

Gon continued to giggle childishly, “Well we need to eat dinner first before we have desert Killua. If you keep filling up on sweets all the time you’re going to get fat! Then who will train with Zushi and I?” Before Killua could respond Gon had turned and headed to the small kitchenette and began taking the food out of the bags and judging by the smell that was starting to permeate the room, it looked like he had brought back both dinner and desert. Had Killua made Gon feel that bad? The mention of Zushi made his ears prick up though.

 

“So where did you go when you left earlier?” he asked, trying to keep his tone friendly. He really didn’t feel like getting into another fight today.

 

Gon stopped for a moment as if thinking about how to respond, although brief, his pause didn’t go unnoticed. “I went back to Wing’s house to see how Zushi’s nen training was going. He’s getting really good now Killua! You really should come with me to see them next time, Zushi really would like to see you.”

 

“Oh I wish I had of known...” Killua paused to choose his words carefully, “I didn’t know where you’d ran off to and my phone wasn’t charged up or I would have tried to call you.” It was a lie, but Killua was starting to feel awkward again and lies often felt easier than the truth. It was bad habit drilled into him as a side affect of his training in deception. He reached out and pocketed his charged up phone. He didn’t want Gon to see it and catch him in the lie.

 

“That’s no problem, you can always come with me tomorrow instead!” Gon grinned excitedly as he brought two plates of food over to the table, sitting one down in front of Killua.

 

“Tomorrow?” Killua echoed, staring at the plate of food.

 

“Yup! Zushi has nine wins now and only two losses, so if he wins his next fight he gets to challenge a floor master. That’s why Wing asked us to come remember?” Gon paused to take a bite of food, chewing it thoughtfully before swallowing and continuing. “Well he’s been issued a challenge by another fighter, they’ve agreed to fight next month so it’s a few weeks away. But Wing and Zushi asked if we could stay and help him train more.”

 

Killua suddenly felt his appetite vanish at Gon’s words. No this couldn’t be happening! He’d just made his perfect plan to tell Gon how he felt, he needed to get away from the arena. They’d been here for close to a month already. “And what did you tell them?” he asked in a quiet voice.

 

“Naturally I told them we would stay and help! That’s what friends are for, and we owe a lot to Wing for teaching us nen in the first place.” seemingly oblivious to his friends discomfort Gon continued to eat with gusto. Killua could only sit and stare at his own plate, his carefully laid out plan had been foiled. He felt his heart sinking in his chest.

 


	6. Chapter 6

 

Gon couldn’t help but fidget as he stood in the elevator back at Heaven’s arena. He was staring at the buttons that would take him to the floor he needed. That morning he had gotten up early, intending to sneak out before Killua woke up because he didn’t want to have another fight with his friend. It had been two weeks since Gon had told Killua he wanted to stay and help Zushi with his training for his upcoming fight. Two weeks of being given the cold shoulder and endless arguing over stupid things. 

 

  Where originally it had been Gon who was glued to his phone and hiding what he was doing, he now found himself watching Killua ignore him in favour of his laptop or his own phone - all because of that stupid website and that stupid romance story. Gon was the first to admit he wasn’t the smartest person, but he’d eventually taken it upon himself to have a look at the website. That’s when he’d realised where he’d seen it before. He was now certain that this Calliope, was actually Hisoka.

 

  With a grimace he reached up and pressed the button for the 244 th floor. In the time since Gon had made his arrangement with the Magician the mad had claimed his spot amongst the floor masters. The teen had never been this high up within the tower, and so he was not sure what to expect when he reached Hisoka’s floor. In an attempt to keep his composure he idly hummed along with the music playing in the small carriage. He needed to confront Hisoka. 

 

  Being alone with his thoughts made time feel as if the elevator was slowing down. He watched the floor lights tick by, one by one. With each passing floor he grew more and more nervous. True, he may have come along way with his nen training, but was he strong enough to protect himself should Hisoka decide to get violent? The man was strange after all and prone to random mood changes, Gon reminded himself that he needed to be ready if Hisoka decided he wanted to fight. A loud  _ ding _ rang out pulling him back from his thoughts; he’d reached Hisoka’s floor. Cautiously he exited the elevator and looked around. He found himself in what looked like a large foyer area, on the wall were decals indicating he’d disembarked on floor ‘244’, and directly facing the elevator was a large wooden door. Steeling himself for what was to come he tried to stride as confidently as he could, despite the butterflies building in his stomach, and raised a hand to knock on the door. And stopped. Was that music he could hear? It was faint, but he definitely thought he could hear something playing inside the apartment. At least he knew the man was home, but would he be able to knock loud enough for him to hear him over the music? Gon knew his own strength and if he wasn’t careful he could easily demolish the door, something he doubted the older Hunter would be very amused by. Considering his options, he continued to listen to the tune and found himself humming along despite his predicament. It wasn’t unpleasant, and it sounded almost like flamenco. He giggled to himself at the mental image of Hisoka in a flamenco dress dancing around his apartment. As soon as the picture came to mind the music stopped. Shaking away his amusement Gon quickly looked for some sort of door bell. Unfortunately, there wasn’t one. He’d have to knock. Again, he raised his hand, but was struck by the realisation he hadn’t planned a reason to give should Hisoka question why he had suddenly shown up at his door. 

 

  He closed his eyes, cursing himself for his lack of planning, when he smelt...bacon? Gon’s stomach growled in response, and he chuckled nervously. In a rush to get here as early as possible he’d, apparently, forgotten to eat. If he’s making breakfast maybe I should go and come back later? It would be rude to show up uninvited and interrupt his meal after all. Hunger and a desire to avoid showing bad manners drove Gon to turn back towards the elevator. If he was quick he could grab something to eat from one of the shops on the lower floors, and come back when Hisoka had finished, hopefully with an actual plan. 

 

  The sound of faint footsteps, followed by the opening of a door made him pause, and the voice that followed caused him to freeze up. “Oh, so I wasn’t just imagining my little apple’s aura outside my door,” it said in a pleased purr. Gon turned to see Hisoka leaning in the door frame...was he wearing an apron? “How can I help you today Gon? You’ve been out here for a while now, the arena staff might start to get suspicious if you keep it up.” 

 

 Gon, embarrassed, lowered his eyes to his feet...and saw Hisoka’s slippers.  “Are you wearing bunny slippers?” he asked suddenly nonplussed. Why did he feel like every time he saw this man he would see a new side to him? Hisoka raised a foot to point towards his unexpected guest in response.

 

  “Oh? These? Well I was just cooking and I don’t like to be barefoot in the kitchen.” he spoke as if it should have been obvious. “Besides you’re still hovering at my door Gon, whatever it is you can talk to me about it inside.” 

 

  “Well the thing is… I did come here to see you”, Gon started but was cut off by the other before he could finish his thought.

 

   “Gon.” Hisoka spoke up, this time in a firmer tone that made it clear he wouldn’t accept any refusal, “Come inside, if you insist on staying out here much longer your breakfast is going to go cold.” Gon didn’t miss the way Hisoka stressed the word ‘your’, and he looked up to see the man’s golden stare appraising him. Before he had a chance to say anything more, Hisoka turned, and walked back inside his home, leaving the flustered teen to follow. Gon quickly hurried to enter before the door fully closed, flinching as he heard it bang shut behind him.

 

  Now that he was standing in the hallway the previously faint scent of bacon was much stronger...could he also smell eggs and toast?  _ Did he really make this just for me? _ Gon couldn’t help but stare at the other man as he walked around carelessly in his slippers, boxers and a vest under the pink chefs apron he’d been sporting at the door.

 

  Unabashed by his current state of dress, Hisoka silently finished plating up the breakfast that he’d prepared after he’d sensed Gon’s aura at the door, and placed it on the breakfast bar of his kitchen. He called the still unsure teen through from the hall as he laid out cutlery for him to use as he ate and smiled warmly at the curious frown on the boys face.  

  “Aren’t you going to eat anything Hisoka?” Gon questioned, still feeling a bit unsure about what was going on. “I mean there’s only one plate, and you said my breakfast was going to go cold?” 

 

  Hisoka chuckled and flattened Gon’s hair with his hand affectionately, “I’ve already had my breakfast Gon, I made that for you when I sensed your aura. Growing boys shouldn’t skip meals.” 

 

  Hearing the hunters words made Gon pause just before taking his first bite, his mouth was practically watering it smelled and looked amazing, but he felt the need to ask. “How did you know I hadn’t eaten anything?” 

 

 To Gon’s irritation Hisoka responded by standing up straight and with an enigmatic smile, tapped his nose. “A magician never reveals his secrets Gon. Now be good and eat your food, I need to get a shower and I’ll be back with you shortly. Help yourself to something to drink from the fridge if you’re thirsty.” With as small wave he gestured to the large fridge as he walked out of the kitchen, leaving a confused, but grateful, Gon to finish eating. 

 

******

 

  It didn’t take long for the hungry teen to finish his meal, which left him waiting for Hisoka to return from his shower. Unsure what to do, he put the dirtied plate and cutlery in the sink and decided to explore a little while he was on his own. Walking down the hallway Gon couldn’t help comparing the large apartment to the room he had earned upon reaching the 100 th floor, and then the much more spacious room on the 200 th floor. This, however, was something else; he didn’t think he had ever been somewhere so grand before. Most of the doors were closed, but as Gon wandered through the apartment, he kept an eye out for any that were open. Hisoka was continuing to be strangely nice to him, and Gon was finding it confusing; the way the man could express his desire to kill him one day and then be making him food the next.  _ I’ll never understand Hisoka, yes he’s been kind enough to make food for me but I still need to talk to him.  _ So far Gon had found a large lounge with a huge wall mounted TV, and Hisoka’s private gym.  _ He must spend a lot of time in here. There’s so many exercise machines!  _ He wandered inside, and was standing in awe of the view out of the gym’s windows when he thought he heard the shower turn off. Worried he would be scolded for snooping he decided to hurry back. 

 

  As it turned out Gon needn’t have worried. He found himself sitting alone for a short while before the redhead finally reappeared. His hair had been styled upwards and his face paint had been applied as carefully as it had been on the day they’d first met at the exam. The familiar sight put Gon slightly more at ease; even if the man had chosen a fairly plain ensemble of light blue jeans and a plain magenta t-shirt. The sight of Hisoka in such everyday clothing was still a little off putting though, especially after he’d grown used to his usually flamboyant outfits. “ _ He sure seems to like wearing pink,”  _ Gon thought out loud as he watched his host walking back into the kitchen. The comment earned him a raised brow and a smirk from the older Hunter.

 

 “Oh? Is there a problem with me liking this colour?” Hisoka asked curiously, “I like to think it brings out my lovely amber eyes, people tell me they’re one of my best features.” Not missing a step he sauntered over to the fridge, “Other people like some of my other…attributes…I won’t go into details as you’re a bit young for that kind of talk. Would you like to join me for some orange juice, Gon?” 

 

 Gon felt the heat rise in his cheeks as he realised he’d spoke his thoughts out loud. Hisoka was now leaning against the fridge, a large jug of orange juice in one hand, and two glasses in the other; plastered on the man’s was his signature smirk.  _ Why can’t he just stop playing these games with me? “ _ S-sure thank you Hisoka.” Gon only looked up when he heard the quiet clink of a glasses being placed in front of him. 

  
  


 “So my little apple, I still have no idea as to what I owe the honour of your visit. What brings you all the way to my humble abode?” Hisoka asked after pouring his own drink and enjoying the tangy scent of freshly squeezed fruit. 

 

  At first Gon didn’t respond, he wasn’t sure how to start the conversation. He knew why he’d come, he was concerned about Killua. His best friend had been acting increasingly strange ever since he’d discovered that romance story. As confident as Gon was that Hisoka was the person writing it, he was also worried he might be making a mistake. “Well the thing is Hisoka...” Gon paused continuing to consider his words carefully, nobody knew he was here after all...and he was with this dangerous and unpredictable man. “I’ve been helping you for a while now as you said you needed inspiration for your book? It’s just, well, I know you agreed to help me with my search for Ging...but you haven’t really done anything. So I was wondering if I could instead ask you for some advice about something else?” 

 

   To Gon’s irritation Hisoka simply stood there, leaning against the counter top, and swirling his glass with that smug smile. He remembered full well the agreement he’d made with the boy sitting across the room from him. Be his muse, and he would inform Gon of any information he came across relating to his father. Gon has been more than happy to jump at the arrangement. “Gon are you asking to change the nature of our arrangement?” Hisoka finally asked, looking at the boy with narrowed eyes, “As I told you at the start of this little partnership it would take me a long time, your father is a very elusive man. If he doesn’t want to be found, then he won’t be.” 

 

  “Well…I would still appreciate your help with finding Ging...” Gon’s nerves were starting to get the better of him, he found it hard to meet the harsh golden stare as he felt it boring into him, “It’s just…I…I thought you…” 

 

  “You thought what Gon?” Hisoka questioned, “That you could just show up on my doorstep and make demands?” 

 

  “No!” Gon slammed his hands down on the breakfast bar in frustration, “I’ve done everything  _ you’ve _ asked me to! I kept things a secret from Killua, every time you called me or sent me a message I’ve always answered your questions. Even the weird ones…” Gon swallowed before continuing his tirade; he’d come here to give Hisoka a piece of his mind and he wasn’t planning to leave until he had said what he needed to say. “And now…now Killua is acting really strange with me! It was your idea that I take him on a date, and I did that. Then he started being weird, and I know he’s been reading this story your writing too!” 

 

  Hisoka downed his drink and put the glass on the counter behind him, he was growing bored with this conversation. “What is your point Gon? Despite what you might think I am actually a busy man.” 

 

  “I want you to stop whatever it is you’re doing that’s making Killua act so strange!” Gon snapped back at the seemingly bored magician. He watched as Hisoka rolled his eyes in irritation at the outburst. 

 

  “Okay Gon, you seem to be rather upset with me for some reason. I am not sure why.” Hisoka moved to lean towards the angry teenager, voice taking on a dangerously low tone “However, my home is not a day care for cranky  _ children _ and I am not a babysitter. If all you wanted to do was have a tantrum, then I suggest you leave before my patience runs out.” Not caring to listen to any more of what his guest had to say, Hisoka strolled out of the room, intending to ignore the boy until he calmed down. Unless he chose to leave. 

 

  Hisoka had made it halfway down his hall, towards his personal gym, when he heard the sound of footsteps coming up from behind.  _ Oh how cute, he thinks he can ambush me?  _ He braced himself for the impact of Gon’s attack, however, it never came. Instead Gon’s voice reverberated from several paces behind him. 

 

  “Why can’t you just talk to me normally for once?” The boy shouted, “You always have to make everything into some sort of game! I’m worried about Killua, he’s my best friend and now he can barely look at me because I did what you told me to!” The young hunter balled his hands into fists, as he tried to fight back the tears building up in his watering eyes. 

 

  Still facing away, Hisoka licked his lips and gave a low moan deep in his throat, why didn’t his little fruit just leave? surely, he knew by now how he affected him when he got like this?  _ No…calm down, it’s not time yet. _ He commanded himself to remain passive and not to react to the bait. Without answering, or giving any outward sign of acknowledgement he took another step towards the gym.

 

  “Why won’t you answer me, Hisoka?” growing more frustrated with the situation, Gon screamed at the older hunter and charged down the corridor, intending to try and kick the other’s legs out from under him. He hoped to catch the man off guard, and get him to his knees, so that he’d have an easier time interrogating him. 

 

  Unfortunately for Gon, his opponent had already anticipated his move and had activated his own nen, using bungee gum to secure one of his feet to the floor, and had used it to pivot around to face him. Once facing the charging boy, Hisoka swung his free leg up in a roundhouse kick, easily sending Gon flying backwards down the corridor. Hisoka watched impassively as his would be attacker landed flat on his back. “Because you are acting like a brat,” he sneered, as he slowly stalked down the hall towards him. “Just because I haven’t found anything of use to you yet, does not mean I never will,” he continued to explain as he stood over the prone teenager. “Our agreement had no end date. Even if I no longer needed your help as my muse, I would still have been bound by my word.” With a sigh Hisoka lent down and offered his hand to Gon, to help him back to his feet; he needed to remind himself how immature his unripe fruit truly was at times.

 

  Not ready to let go of his anger, Gon swiped the hand away. Scowling as he climbed to his feet unaided, he took a wild swing at the magicians face. Hisoka dodged it with ease. As he did so, he brought his hand up to grasp the boy by the throat, hauling him up and slamming him into the wall. Gon started to feel alarmed as he struggled to draw breath to replace what had been knocked out of him by the impact. Instinctively, he tried to pull the large hand from around his neck as he tried futilely to kick the one holding him in place. Large brown eyes widened with shock as they took in the animalistic expression on Hisoka’s face. He couldn’t help the memory of when he’d first fought against the redhead in Swindlers Swamp from rising up in his mind; how he’d held him aloft and choked him with a smile then too. 

 

 “Aaaahhh Gon” Hisoka moaned his name with wide smile on his face, “Stop looking at me like that…you know what you do to me...” he licked his lips slowly. “I swear you are such a  _ troublesome _ boy, so  _ ungrateful _ , after all the things I’ve done for you. Back on Zevil Island I even gave you back my tag after you  _ lost _ it. When you came here I stopped you getting seriously hurt by those three imbeciles.” Gon cut him off by continuing to struggle, now hitting the outstretched arm holding him to the wall, Hisoka responded in kind. Tightening his hold on the boy’s neck ever so slightly, when Gon tried, once again, to unsuccessfully kick him in the stomach. Hisoka chuckled. 

 

  “Put me down Hisoka!” Gon tried to sound commanding, but with the hand wrapped securely around his windpipe it came out as a harsh whisper instead. Still grinning Hisoka shook his head. 

 

  “How about, no?” his voice was as soft as silk as he taunted his prey. “I really don’t understand why you insist on running half way around the known world to find that man you call a  _ father _ . He clearly didn’t care about you enough to see you grow up. What has  _ Ging _ actually done to earn that kind of loyalty? Don’t you think if he  _ wanted _ you to find him that you would have done so?”

 

   That did it, Gon stopped moving, letting himself hang limply in Hisoka’s grip. Gold eyes widened in surprise and interest; he hadn’t expected this reaction. Had he pushed too far? Did he break his precious toy so easily? When their eyes met again he realised he had been mistaken, Gon wasn’t one to be broken so effortlessly. Hisoka moaned once again at the anger he could see burning in those innocent brown eyes,  _ I need to stop…it’s too soon to ruin him…oh, Gon I can hardly wait to see you grow up.  _

 

   “Shut up!” Gon attempted to yell as he resumed trying to remove the hand holding him to the wall with little to no success. “What do you know about Ging anyway?”   
  
  “I know that your little friend Killua cares about you far more,” Hisoka sneered. “Why else do you think I suggested you take him on a date? Who do you think I got the idea for my book from? Did you think I made Kane and Gene up off the top of my head?”

 

   Gon’s eyes went wide with confusion for a brief moment, taking in all the sudden questions. He tried to piece together what any of it could have to do with them. The memory of the day he had come back to find Killua trying to draw slowly came back to him. He remembered his friend explaining the story and what it had been about.    
  
_ “It’s a romance story between these two guys, who are best friends since they were little kids…well they’re both in their late teens and one of them sort of has a crush on the other but he doesn’t want to ruin their friendship.”  _

  Killua’s words weren’t the only ones to reverberate inside Gon’s head, after all that was the same day that Hisoka had planted the suggestion that he take Killua on that date. 

 

_ “Perhaps you can finally take your little friend on a date? I bet you could give me some wonderful inspiration then couldn’t you my adorable muse?” _

 

  Watching the memories flooding Gon’s mind, witnessing how his expression morphed back and forth between so many conflicting emotions was truly fascinating for Hisoka. Enthralled as was by the sight, he didn’t notice his hand subconsciously loosening its grip on the boys neck. He didn’t pay as much attention as he should have, and Gon took the chance to take a deep breath before trying, once again, to land a kick to Hisoka’s chest. He was foiled by Hisoka’s superior speed. The magician easily caught the kick with his free hand. 

 

 “How am I supposed to know why you wanted me to take Killua on a date Hisoka? We’re both boys!” Gon protested as he continued to struggle to free himself. “It’s like you going out with his brother Illumi! Now let go of my neck already, Hisoka!” 

 

 Hisoka grinned, he still had hold of Gon’s foot. “As you wish my precious apple,” he purred. With his quick reflexes Hisoka moved his hand holding Gon’s foot to his ankle and released his hold on the boy’s throat. The result was an upside down Gon, being held aloft by his leg instead. 

 

 “Put me down already!” Gon continued to yell, much to Hisoka’s amusement. Instead of putting the young hunter down, he raised his arm up, so that he was holding Gon aloft and could see those glaring eyes better. 

 

 “But I did what you asked Gon, you  _ asked _ me to let go of your neck. Now you want me to put you down as well? My so demanding today…” Hisoka smirked, “Maybe I should hang you from the ceiling with my bungee-gum? Leave you dangling there until you learn some manners? It’s rude to come into someone else’s home and start throwing a tantrum, Gon. You’re  _ very _ lucky I am so fond of  _ you _ .” He narrowed his eyes dangerously as he spoke. The magicians voice had turned ice cold and Gon couldn’t help the shiver that went down his spine. 

 

  “Well, maybe I think it’s rude to play games with people like your doing with me, Hisoka!” Gon huffed and crossed his arms, pouting up at the man dangling him in the air. He was about to say more when the sound of a phone ringing interrupted his train of thought. As he watched Hisoka pull his phone from his jeans pocket, he scowled his displeasure at the apparent dismissal. 

 

   If Hisoka had noticed, he didn’t show it, instead lighting up when he read the caller ID and eagerly pressing answer on his phone. “Illumi! What a pleasant surprise, how may I be of service?” he all but purred down the phone. From his position Gon was only privy to the magician’s side of the conversation but it was clear from his tone of voice that he was pleased to hear from his friend’s older brother. 

 

  “Well if you stopped ignoring my messages and my calls then maybe I wouldn’t have to resort to such tactics to get your attention,” Hisoka continued to say as he lowered Gon slightly. His hair was only just hovering above the carpet and he tried to punch Hisoka’s legs whilst the man carried him deeper into the apartment. “Right now?…well I do have a small pest problem I would need to deal with…well I’m at my apartment right now Illumi…”  

 

  Gon tried to kick Hisoka again, in the hope that the magician would finally let go. Unfortunately for him, Hisoka was adept enough with nen to block any effect the blow would have had, and continued to dangle Gon as he walked into his private gym. He was still talking on the phone, as if the whole situation was perfectly normal. 

 

  “Honestly Illumi you keep making such a big deal out of my clothing, I’m dressed in something normal…yes I know that place…so is this you actually accepting my offer of a date?” Gon had to stifle a giggle as Hisoka held the phone away from his ear, shooting the teen a look of disapproval as he did so. Gon could only just make out Illumi’s irritated voice coming through the phone before Hisoka moved it back to his ear. “Relax, Illumi, I was teasing…well if you want me to stop asking then just say yes…just one chance and if you really don’t enjoy it….well need a I remind you that last time you did kiss me back…lunch sounds fine. I have a couple of things to attend to but I won’t miss our lunch date for anything.” Hisoka smiled as he ended the call.

 

  Bewildered, Gon continued to stare at Hisoka with wide eyes. “Was that really Killua’s brother? Were you saying all that just to tease me?” He asked in genuine confusion.

 

  “Saying all of what Gon?” Hisoka responded nonchalantly. 

 

  Gon cross his arms and huffed again, “But you and Illumi are both men! Me and Killua are both guys too, why do you keep talking bout dates?” 

 

  It was as if a switch had been flipped inside the magician, and he felt laughter build up inside as his eyes flashed with mirth. Unable to contain his merriment he dropped Gon to the floor as he started to shake with his laughter. Gon was too stunned by the sudden collision with the floor to think about trying to make a break for it. Hisoka was now bent double as he covered his face with one hand, occasionally peeking through his fingers at the sulking teen. “Oh Gon….” he purred between fits of giggles, “You’re so precious aren’t you?” 

 

 “Stop making fun of me!” Gon pouted from his position on the floor.

 

  As suddenly as the laughter had come, it left and Hisoka’s voice returned to normal. In a flash, Gon found himself subjected to the hunter’s intense stare. “I’m not Gon. It’s just surprising that you don’t seem to know that sometimes two guys date, sometimes two girls date as well. It’s not always a guy and a girl, my dear sweet apple. Then again you are from a pretty secluded part of the world, maybe I shouldn’t be so shocked.” 

 

 “Hisoka what are you talking about?” Gon asked pointedly, trying to push himself to his feet and fighting the dizziness from being held upside down for so long and then dropped unceremoniously on his head.

 

  Hisoka sighed and ran his hand through his hair disturbing the style ever so slightly. “I don’t have time to explain this now. There really are things I need to attend to this morning and now Illumi wants to meet with me for lunch. He’s been ignoring my calls ever since we spied on your  _ date _ with Killua. I’ll be gone for a while, so make use of the gym if you like. You’re going to wait here for me, until I get back…oh and I’d suggest reading the published chapters of my story. Kane is Killua and you’re Gene.” With that last revelation still hanging in the air, Hisoka turned on his heel to leave the room. He was about to close the door when Gon finally managed to stand. 

 

  “Like hell I’m gonna stay here and wait for you to get back Hisoka! I’m not going to let you walk away, stop playing around.” Gon tried to be commanding, but he didn’t paint a very persuasive image. He was stood, holding his head in his hand and swaying slightly. 

 

  Hisoka regarded him from the door frame in a calculating manner, “There’s bottled water and some protein bars in the cooler by the weights, help yourself. I’ll text you the Wi-Fi password before I leave. Don’t over do it, remember to warm up and cool down if you decide to work out okay?” 

 

   Before Gon could make a reply or take action the magician had already closed the door, leaving him in the room alone. Slowly, Gon staggered over to the door and tried to open it. It wouldn’t budge. Remembering the earlier threat to use nen to hang him to the ceiling Gon activated his gyo and could just barely make out a faint pink outline of Hisoka’s aura. The door had been sealed shut with bungee-gum. He was about to bang on it and demand to be let out of the room when he felt a vibration on his pocket. In surprise, Gon tugged his phone from his pocket, he had a new message.   
  
_ Mad Hatter: _ _   
_ _   
_ _ As promised Gon the password for the apartment Wi-Fi is: _ _   
_ _ TextureSurprise  _ __   
  


_ That’s not a typo there is no space in the password. _

_ I’ll try not to come home too late. Apologies, but I can’t allow you to roam around my apartment freely.  _

_   
_ _ Have fun!  _

 

__ Gon groaned to himself. He contemplated trying to call Hisoka or, possibly, he could text him back? Ultimately, he decided it wouldn’t be worth the effort and resigned himself to waiting for Hisoka to return. Feeling thirsty, he was pleased to find that the man hadn’t been lying about the bottled water. Deciding he didn’t have anything better to do, and curious as to why Hisoka had said to read his book, he connected his phone to the internet. Once online, he loaded up the webpage for Calliope’s Amusements. I guess reading the story will help me understand what he’s talking about…no idea why he’s insisting on keeping me here though... 


	7. Chapter 7

The afternoon was just beginning when Hisoka finally strode into the small restaurant that Illumi had suggested for their lunch time meeting. The magician had finished off his ‘everyday’ outfit with a denim jacket that had all four suit symbols decorating the front and back, and some simple flat pumps.

 

  Waiting at their table Illumi resisted the urge to roll his eyes at the way Hisoka didn’t so much as walk, as strut across the room to join him. Finally taking his seat, he removed his jacket with a wry smile tugging at his lips, and folded it next to him in the booth.

 

   “Did you deal with your little pest problem Hisoka?” Illumi asked as soon as he’d sat down across from him.

 

   “You could say that.” Hisoka replied rather absently, “Say this is a bit fancy for _just_ a meeting Illumi. Are you sure this isn’t meant to be a date?” the slightest hint of mockery in his tone.

 

   Illumi gave his friend a pointed look but otherwise ignored the bait, “Well this place comes highly recommended. Also it’s got the right balance of being public enough so that we won’t be noticed but quiet enough for us to talk discreetly.” _Not that you don’t draw enough attention to yourself as it is._

 

  “So it’s all business then?” Hisoka pouted and sighed in a put upon fashion, “You never call me to do anything fun anymore Illumi, I thought we were taking our relationship to the next level.” He continued to play up his pretence of acting as if he were being taken for granted he picked up a copy of the menu and decided on what he would like to eat. “Let’s order food first then you can tell me all about it.”

 

   It didn’t take long for the men to signal a waiter to their table, place their orders and resume their comfortable silence. It was of no surprise to Illumi that Hisoka was the first to speak.

 

   “So was it really that bad spending time with me playing chaperone that you had to ignore me for weeks?” he complained. Staring out across the floor of the restaurant, he kept a mental note of how many empty tables there were currently. So far it was only the beginning of the lunch rush and the place was already mostly full.

 

   “You kissed me Hisoka.” Illumi spoke in his usual monotone, “In front of Kil, what would you have done if he’d recognized us both?”

 

  Hisoka didn’t respond at first, choosing to keep observing their environment as he lightly tapped his fingers on the table. To anyone else who didn’t know the magician well they would think he hadn’t heard what was said. Illumi knew differently, the redhead liked to play dumb when it suited his whims. “The way I remember it somebody kissed me back.” he finally replied without looking at the man sitting across the table.

 

  “Can we talk about what I asked you here to discuss now?” Illumi asked, wanting to get back on track. Hisoka responded with a slight shrug of his shoulders finally turning his attention back to the assassin. Illumi said, “I wanted to request your assistance on an upcoming job as I believe you know the area in question quite well. The target is in Glam Gas Land in the United States of Saherta...”

 

   Hisoka gave a dismissive wave of his hand, “What of it? If this is your way of trying to uncover more about me Illumi, it’s not going to work.” _Sneaky Illumi, but you’re not the only one who can push a person’s buttons._ Hisoka was about to add something else to his retort when their waiter returned to their table with their order. Leaving as quickly as they appeared.

 

   “That thought hadn’t crossed my mind Hisoka. I’ve heard the rumours that you are indeed from the ‘Pleasure Capital’ but it’s not necessary for me to know your origins. My intention was simply to ask if you knew the city and if you could recommend a good place to stay.” Illumi was confused by his friends sudden defensiveness but chose not to push it for now. There wouldn’t be any advantage in annoying the man at this moment in time, and he wanted to maintain a discreet presence.

 

   “I suppose that is something I could help you with...” Hisoka relaxed his posture and leant back against his seat. “I mean it’s not like you’re trying to dig up the skeletons in my closet so you can ask my parents permission to court me or anything. This is _you_ we’re talking about Illumi.”

 

   The dark haired man paused, just about to take a bite of his meal, dark eyes narrowing slightly at the strange phrasing. “I fail to see how any relationship that is not strictly for business purposes could possibly be advantageous for me, or the family business”

 

   Still feeling a little excitable from his earlier confrontation with his unexpected visitor Hisoka was already feeling quite playful. The way Illumi was deftly deflecting his flirting was only adding fuel to the not entirely dead embers. _I could have some fun with this, perhaps I could persuade him that it would be advantageous?_ Giving a languid stretch of his upper body to show off his toned arms he repositioned himself so that he had one leg crossed over the other. Fixing his companion with his golden gaze, he started his little game. “Don’t you need a helping _hand_ to relieve a little tension every now and then?”

 

  “That’s why I learnt acupuncture Hisoka. I’m very good with my needles.” Illumi replied quickly, missing the point entirely, much to Hisoka’s amusement.

 

 "Hmmm oh yes I remember how good you are with those..." Hisoka looked at Illumi through his lashes with a flirtatious smile, "But a massage can be just as good and I am very good with my hands, or so I'm told"

 

  Without looking up from his food Illumi replied, "I find massage to be needlessly time consuming."

  Hisoka arched his brow in surprise at the thought that Illumi would ever willingly expose his back to somebody else, "Really?” he paused to try and keep the wonderment out of his next words, “Well they can't have been that good at it then."

 

 "Mother made sure all the staff were professionally trained. But I found them to be rather inefficient." came the familiar mono-toned response. If he had picked up on the amazement in Hisoka’s question he didn’t react to it. "There was always one who took far too long and paid too much attention to my gluteal muscles."

 

 It was now Hisoka’s turn to pause, "Mama Zoldyck made one of the butlers massage you?" he asked in surprise.

 

  Illumi gave a small nod of his head, watching as Hisoka picked up his drink, "She decided that I needed to experience new kinds of relaxation methods. She insisted they visit me once a week throughout my teenage years. I found it tedious, but as it was part of my training, I accepted it's necessity."

 

 Hisoka choked on his drink but recovered quickly, wiping his mouth with a napkin as he gave Illumi a curious look. "Tell me Illu... was she pretty?"

 

 "I've never had an opinion one way or the other as to my Mother's appearance, why do you ask?" Illumi continued to observe the redhead, he couldn’t understand how this was relevant to their conversation.

 

  Hisoka rolled his eyes, "Neither do I Illumi, honestly it's like talking to a pin cushion talking to you sometimes. I meant your _masseuse_. Was she pretty?"

 

 “He” Illumi corrected, " But I fail to recall _his_ appearance. Why would that affect his competence as a masseuse?”

 

  Hisoka fixed Illumi with an intense stare for a moment thinking about his reply, "Oh no reason, just that I thought... no it's stupid there's no way it could be that."

 

  In response Illumi tilted his head. "Are you suggesting that I missed a lesson during my training, Hisoka? I assure you, I was a diligent student."

 

  Silence settled between both men as they continued to eat. The restaurant was now in the grips of the lunch-time rush and the background chatter grew with the increasingly number of occupied tables. Once again it was Hisoka who chose to pick up the conversation, unwilling to let his suspicions go just yet. "I have no doubt you are very diligent Illumi, but even teenaged you must have been distracted by something?" he paused to take another bite of food chewing thoughtfully, "I mean it's not like you to forget a face, maybe he wasn't your type."

  Illumi frowned, irritated by the insinuation that he would be distracted by anything. "Training to be an assassin requires complete focus Hisoka. You of all people should understand this. And I fail to see how the attractiveness of my butler Hishita, or whether he is or is not my 'type' would have any bearing on this conversation."

 

  Sensing he might be pushing too far too fast Hisoka decided to soften his approach, "Yes you're quite right Illu, my apologies I didn’t mean to cause any offence." he flashed a pleased smile, "How uncouth of me to suggest that a masterful assassin such as yourself could possibly be so fixated on his ass being played with that he didn't remember such important details as a person’s facial features...." he let the sentence hang in the air, returning his focus to his lunch.

 

  Illumi stiffened in his seat. He remembered the feeling of Hishita’s hands on him, of how irritated he had been at the man's insistence that he thoroughly work all the muscles in his lower back, buttocks and legs. He hadn't needed to see the man's face to know who he was. How would seeing him have made the experience any less frustrating?

"I was lying on my front Hisoka. It would have been extremely difficult to observe Hishita’s face as he worked. If you are suggesting that I do not know what Hishita looks like, I assure you, you are wrong."

 

 "Oh so they didn't fire him for irritating you?" the Magician had noticed his dinner companions sudden change in demeanour but pretended not to see, "I would have thought they'd have disposed of him if you had of complained."

 

 "I found the whole experience irritating, Hisoka. I simply understood that Mother saw it as a necessary part of my education. Complaining would have been both insulting to my Mother and deprived me of an important educational experience. I would not have gained anything by doing so," Illumi said, watching his companion eat.

 

 Feigning ignorance to his friends irritation Hisoka glanced around at their surroundings, the cafe was still busy, and full of other customers. Discreetly he slipped one of his feet out of his pink pumps and trailed it up Illumi's calf while idly staring at his drink. "I am curious about _one thing_ though Illu-mi" he stretched out the man's name deliberately still not making eye contact, "Do you prefer me without my makeup like last time we went out like this?"

 

 Illumi stilled in his chair. "If you're trying to assess how many weapons I have on my person Hisoka, I can assure you asking is faster. And I found your appearance without your make-up to be," he thought for a second, "different. I had never noticed how sharp your cheek bones were, for example." He paused and then added, "The answer is 27, if you aren't including my Nen needles. So you can stop rubbing my leg." He was beginning to feel uncomfortable. Hisoka was reminding him of the way Hishita had touched him. His heart rate was increasing and his body was beginning to tense as the man's foot continued to move further up his leg.

 

 Unperturbed by the other's declaration that he was armed Hisoka continued slowly trailing his foot up the other's body. "It's so sweet of you to notice, and where is the fun in simply asking? Are we counting a certain larger weapon in that number, that doesn't count your needles?" He purred the second question as he brushed his foot against the other's crotch, watching him intently for any subtle change in position and body language.

 

 For the first time in a while Illumi felt truly confused. He didn't know which question to answer first or which weapon Hisoka was referring to. He did have a custom built throwing knife at his lower back. Illumi gasped as he felt Hisoka's foot make contact with his crotch. It hadn't felt like this when Hishita had massaged him there. His body felt hot. "I'm afraid I don't understand your question Hisoka." Illumi adjusted to a more comfortable position in his seat. "My apologies."

 

 Amusement danced in Hisoka's golden eyes when he heard the gasp, he kept the touch gentle and barely there, enjoying the sight in front of him. _Dinner and a show eh Illumi?_ he thought to himself. "That's quite alright" he purred lowering his voice an octave and leaning forward, "Does it feel nicer when I touch you than when your butler did? Would you like _me_ to touch you in other places?"

 

 Illumi focussed on Hisoka's face, his smile, his eyes. He understood how to read people, even if he didn't understand the outside world's insistence upon emotional connection. The man was enjoying himself. "It feels different," he said. "For starters Hishita never used his foot." Watching Hisoka's face did make the experience less... "I find it to be less unpleasant, yes." His breathing was erratic and he closed his eyes in an effort to calm his body. "I can not ever recall wanting anyone to touch me anywhere, other than to heal me when I was injured," he said and was irritated at how breathless his voice had become.

 

  Still leaning forward Hisoka continued to maintain the intense eye contact as he listened to the Illumi's words, noting with pleasure the way they had been spoken. He had never imagined he would be able to affect the assassin quite this much. He’d smirked when his friend had closed his eyes. Was he closer to the mark then he had anticipated? "Not even yourself Illu?" he asked softly but still using that same tone as before, "Don't tell me you've never been curious about what it would feel like to touch yourself, to see how it felt in comparison to _him_... I promise however he made you feel I can make you feel much better. You can't tell me you didn't enjoy kissing me back at the bakery Illu." Upping his gambit Hisoka reached out a hand to move a stray hair that had fallen across his friends face.

 

 "I have enough self control," Illumi startled and opened his eyes when he felt his companions hand by his face. He stifled a groan as Hisoka's foot found a particularly sensitive area at the head of his cock. "I have no doubt that you are a skilled masseuse Hisoka." Illumi swallowed and tried to concentrate. "You are an accomplished man. But I have never desired any other pleasure than that of the kill." He closed his eyes and remembered the feeling of Hisoka's lips against his. The surprising softness and heat. He brought his hand up to cover his mouth as a small moan escaped him. "You...you are a very skilled man."

 

 Hisoka didn't even try to hide the chuckle that came out upon hearing the compliments coming from Illumi's lips, tilting his head and giving him his signature closed eye smile. "You're so sweet when you want to be. Such an _honour_ to be considered skilled by one of your family no less!" He opened his eyes again, and rested his head on his free hand. "I can assure you that I have many talents wrapped up in this body of mine, as you could probably imagine... but should you decide to actually _allow_ yourself to find out more..." he let the moment hang as he traced Illumi's jawline. "I could be persuaded to give a private demonstration of just what I can do."

 

 Both meals remained half-eaten on their plates. Completely forgotten in the mist of the oddly intimate moment.

 

 Illumi shuddered at the touch. The man’s words were making him feel...uncomfortable. Hishita had never spoken to him, he'd never looked at him the way Hisoka was...he'd never caused him to feel...this almost felt as good as the first time he'd sliced through his first target's throat in one, clean stroke. The memory brought back a rush of adrenaline and he couldn't control his bodies urge to push up against Hisoka's foot. "It is not flattery to acknowledge your opponents strengths, it is simply logical. I-" Illumi grasped the edge of the table. "I...can not...I would not gain any understanding..." Illumi's head momentarily tilted back as a thrill of pleasure unlike anything he'd ever felt passed through him. "If you continue as you are...I..." Illumi felt himself flush. "I believe this is not usually a public event."

 

 "This Illumi?" Hisoka intoned with an inquisitive expression, "Just what do you think _this_ is?"  he gave a pleased hum as he took in the slight flush to the other's pale complexion. "Although you are right, perhaps I should stop, I doubt the other diners are here for this kind of show... As much fun as exhibitionism can be I think that might be a little much for you." Suddenly sounding bored Hisoka withdrew his foot and quickly inserted it back into his forgotten shoe. Sitting upright once again as if the exchange had never taken place, he watched for the other's reaction to the loss of contact.  

 

  Sitting in silence and staring into those dancing golden eyes Illumi tried to think around the fog which had descended in his mind. _Just what do I think this is? I don’t know? That’s the problem Hisoka._  
  
 “I...I don’t know, but I...I believe that you do.” Illumi continued to observe Hisoka blankly before asking quietly. “Please, could you explain?”     

 

 “Explain what?” Hisoka asked innocently, before breaking out in a cheeky grin. Messing with the usually stoic man was always a fun past time. When his lunch date continued to stare at him without moving he sighed theatrically. “Tell you what, let’s go back to your hotel and kind generous soul that I am...I’ll give you a practical demonstration?”    
  
 Illumi blinked as he tried to process his friend’s continued odd behaviour, he was staring at with a strange expression he didn’t understand. Golden eyes cloudy and his pupils were dilated, and his smile was suggestive. _I really don’t understand the look he’s giving me, but if going back to my hotel will get me the answer...I see no reason to delay. If I truly do have a gap in my understanding, then that needs to be rectified._  
  
 Decision made Illumi spoke up, “That would be acceptable Hisoka. Wait outside and I will pay for the meal, then we shall head to my hotel.”   
  
******  
  
 Languidly stretching Hisoka sat up in the large bed he was currently sharing with an equally naked Illumi and smiled. The lesson he had offered his friend had gone much better than he had expected and he felt pleasantly satisfied. Shivering with delight at the memory of what they had shared, he pouted when he heard his phone vibrating against the bedside table.   
  
 “Is everything alright Hisoka?” Illumi asked sounding rather tired as he looked up at the ceiling. He’d heard the phone going off and wondered if Hisoka was going to leave now or not.   
  
 “My little pest problem might not be fully solved, it’s fine I’m sure. Just give me a moment Illumi.” Hisoka replied as he reached over for his phone; he was slightly surprised to find that he had received over twenty text messages from Gon. He had entirely forgotten he was was still waiting for him at his apartment. His eyes widened as he quickly scanned through them, each message becoming increasingly demanding. It was the final message which had Hisoka bounding out of the bed to find his clothes in a hurry.   
  
_From:_ _Apple-chan <3:_ _  
_ _  
_ _I swear Hisoka if you don’t let me out I’m going to break down the door!_ _  
_ __  
  


“I’m afraid I’m going to need to go Illumi” Hisoka said, quickly dressing himself and looked for his shoes. Ignoring the perplexed expression on his friends face, they had sat up and were watching him curiously.   
  
 “You left your shoes by the chest of drawers Hisoka.” Illumi advised before yawning, “Do you need any assistance with your ‘pest problem’?”   
  
    Smiling back at Illumi as he found and put on his footwear Hisoka tried to sound as reassuring as possible. “Oh? No, it’ll be fine. Don’t worry about it Illumi, I can handle it on my own. I just need to get home before it becomes a bigger problem that’s all.”   
  
   From his position in the bed Illumi continued to stare, he’d never seen Hisoka quite so flustered and it was actually quite entertaining. _I wonder who sent him a message to make him come running like this?_ Shrugging the thoughts away he settled back down into the bed so he could take a nap once Hisoka had left. “Alright then, if you need me you have my number.” his voice slightly was muffled by the pillows.   
  
  “Of course Illumi, I’ll let you get some rest after all that exercise. If you ever want another demonstration you have my number as well.” Hisoka purred from the hotel room door. “Until next time, I really do need to hurry.” He waited for his friend to reply for a few moments before it became apparent that he wasn’t going to. Shaking his head with a fond smile Hisoka quietly exited the room and pulled out his phone to send a message to Gon.   
  
_To: Apple-chan <3_ _  
_ _  
_ _If you break anything I will make sure you pay for it Gon._ _  
_ _  
_ _My apologies for being gone for so long, something came up that I had to attend to._ _  
_ _I am heading home now, and we will have that little chat._ _  
_ _  
_ _Hisoka._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> yes I have chosen to skip over the smut scene at the hotel for a few reasons.  
> The main couple/focus is Killua and Gon and I did want to distract from that, but this is all part of Hisoka's overall game as well.  
> I also did not want to have to up the rating to explicit, when it's the couple from the 'B plot' 
> 
> That being said I am planning to post the sex scene in it's own one shot for those who want to see what Hisoka did when he got Illumi alone at the hotel.


End file.
